"Coyote vs. Acme" will finally get released (just not by Warner Bros.)

To recap/explicate, "Coyote vs. Acme" is a "Looney Tunes" movie mixing live action with animation not unlike "Space Jam" or "Looney Tunes: Back in Action." You know the well-worn observation that Acme products seem to constantly backfire on Wile E. Coyote as he attempts to catch Road Runner? This movie builds upon that by setting up a legal comedy wherein Wile E. Coyote sues Acme. That's, all things considered, a fun premise, and the movie stars Will Forte and John Cena as Coyote and Acme's lawyers, respectively.

Produced by Warner Bros., longtime owners of the "Looney Tunes" intellectual property, the movie had "Coyote vs. Acme" on the slate for July 23, 2023. We can confirm that we included the film in Yardbarker's annual 100 most-anticipated movies, TV shows, albums, and video games for the upcoming year list we made for 2023. Then, things took a bit of a turn.

First, Warner Bros. removed "Coyote vs. Acme" from the schedule. Then, they announced plans to shelve the movie entirely. It would become one of the infamous tax write-off movies for Warner Bros. This led to a lot of incredulity. Some of it came from the people who had worked on the film, which was understandable. In fact, every person who works in a creative field had valid reason for aggravation at such a financially-motivated decision. Fans of "Looney Tunes?" Fans of John Cena? All fairly bummed. However, there was a bit of a glomming onto "Coyote vs. Acme" by those who just liked to talk trash about Warner Bros. and David Zaslav on social media. It became an easy talking point for expressing generalized anger out into the world.

Well, "Coyote vs. Acme" will not be shelved for good. Ketchup Entertainment has bought the worldwide distribution rights to the movie, and the company will give "Coyote vs. Acme" a theatrical release in 2026. This, unsurprisingly, got a lot of play on social media. Now, though, it's time for the trash talkers to walk the walk come 2026.

Here's the thing, Ketchup Entertainment has distributed a "Looney Tunes" movie already. It's called "The Day the Earth Blew Up," and it received its wide release on March 14, 2025. Yeah, it just happened. The movie has made $10.5 million worldwide off of a budget of $15 million and is essentially out of theaters already. 

Where were these presumed "Looney Tunes" lovers that have been calling for the release of "Coyote vs. Acme" for years? If they don't show up in 2026 when Wile E., Will Forte, and John Cena hit the big screen, well, Warner Bros.' notion of shelving the movie, as creatively bankrupt a notion as it may be, will kind of look justified.

(h/t The Wrap)