‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Proves Why It Shouldn’t Have Been Shelved

Coyote vs. Acme is a delightful film and lives up to the hype. Since it is a comedy, one would expect it to be funny. Fortunately, it is and then some.

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Film

Coyote vs. Acme is a triumph and shows why Warner Bros. was wrong to shelve it. 

The Looney Tunes film focuses on Wile E. Coyote as he sues the Acme Corporation for making faulty products that keep him from being able to capture and eat the Road Runner.  Directed by Dave Green, it stars Will Forte, Lana Condor and John Cena. 

For those that don’t know, the film was shelved by Warner Bros. and used as a $30 million tax write-off in 2023. This was due to CEO David Zaslav wanting to cut costs soon after getting the job in 2022 and offset debt in the wake of the studio merging with Discovery in the same year. Even though the $70 million film was finished and slated for a July 2023 release, it was thought that it would underperform when considering the potential marketing costs. Therefore, releasing it seemingly presented a risk not worth taking. 

As a result, there was huge backlash from fans, the film’s crew and others in the film industry. Since Warner Bros. scrapped other completed projects as well, Zaslav’s reign was and still is heavily criticized. What made things worse was the film’s apparent high quality, as per reported by those who managed to see it before it was shelved. Even though Warner Bros. shopped the film around to other distributors, most of them passed on it. 

However, everything changed when distributor Ketchup Entertainment acquired the rights for the film in 2025. They did the same for The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie in 2024. 

Coyote vs. Acme is a delightful film and lives up to the hype.  Since it is a comedy, one would expect it to be funny.  Fortunately, it is and then some. 

As always, the antics of Coyote, Runner and other Looney Tunes characters are highly entertaining. Since the film is a hybrid of live-action and animation, humans get to interact with them in it. The best part about this aspect of the film is how casual the interactions are. The ridiculousness of cartoon characters being in the real world is never brought up, and the film is even funnier because of it. This is due in no small part to its great special effects and CGI integration. 

Casting Chemistry

Forte and Condor play Coyote’s lawyers, Kevin and Paige, respectively.  The chemistry between all three shines, especially when it comes to Forte and Coyote.  Since the film focuses on the duo for a lot of the runtime, the emotional core of it comes from their relationship and is portrayed very well. 

Another stand out of the film is Cena, who plays villain Buddy Crane. Crane represents Acme in the trial as their lawyer and the film’s central antagonist. Since Cena is known mostly for portraying likable heroes due to his time in WWE, his performance as an arrogant lawyer hilariously goes against that and further showcases his comedic talent. Cena’s scenes with Foghorn Leghorn and Tweety Bird are especially entertaining. 

The best part of Coyote vs. Acme is its timely story about everyday people going up against corporations and showing that they refuse to be mistreated by them. Funnily enough, the story perfectly reflects the film’s tumultuous journey to the big screen in a way that would make one think that it was all a part of the marketing. 

With high review scores and decent box office opening projections, Coyote vs. Acme looks to be a textbook example of why quality art should never be hidden. Hopefully, this will show Warner Bros. that there is still an audience for Looney Tunes. The film hits theaters on August 28.