Directed by Dave Green and written by James Gunn, Samy Burch and Jeremy Slater, “Coyote vs. Acme” is a live-action, 3D and 2D animated film that features the famous characters from “Looney Tunes.” However, despite how much it has to say, this hilarious and heartfelt film almost never saw the light of day.
The development of “Coyote vs. Acme” started in 2018, produced by Warner Animation Group, Keylight Pictures and Troll Court Entertainment. The film approached completion sometime near 2023, but was shelved for a tax write off by the company. Other filmmakers and news outlets derided the decision, and Green himself expressed disappointment in its shelving. While eventually the filmmakers were given the option to sell the film to another studio, they failed to do so. Warner considered deleting the film and claiming it as a total loss.
Would-be fans of “Coyote vs. Acme” clamoured on social media after the discovery of the possible destruction of the film. Many industry figures, including popular director duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, advocated for the release of the film. Finally in 2025, Ketchup Entertainment, who had bought and released previous “Looney Tunes” films, were in talks with Warner Bros. Discovery to buy the film. It was finally released this year in August.
“Coyote vs. Acme” voices the frustrations of everyone who’s ever been sold a defective product and has to go through several difficult hoops to get compensated for it, and of those who get ignored and are forced to rebuy. The film features protagonists Wile E. Coyote, his third-rate lawyer Kevin and his niece and assistant Paige, fighting the massive Acme Corporation in a lengthy and complex legal battle for its faulty and dangerous products made for cartoons.
Corporations using the legal system to their advantage, even when it hurts their customers presents a unique irony between the plot of the film and the story behind its release. In 2023 Warner Bros. tried to claim a capital loss by selling the film to another studio for significantly less than what it was worth. When they failed to sell the film however, their only option was to either release the film or to destroy it and claim a capital loss. Despite how many people clamoured for its release, Warner decided it was worth never letting the film see the light of day, and become lost forever. It was only saved by Ketchup Entertainment purchasing it, who ironically enough, made a profit on the film.
Politics past and modern play an important role in the film. Discrimination against toons was already depicted by “Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)” where Judge Doom plans to build a freeway over Toontown, drawing connections to the real life destruction of minority neighborhoods for the construction of freeways throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s. “Coyote vs. Acme” keeps the political element of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)” but tuned for the modern age.
Throughout the movie, the toons’ complaints against Acme aren’t taken seriously because society believes that a toon’s purpose is to be funny, and therefore harm against toons is justifable. Acme’s exploits go unpunished simply because they harm toons and not humans, and because Acme claims that they make human products better through their “research” into the cartoon line. This parallels “Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)” Judge Doom and Cloverleaf justify the destruction of Toon-town by claiming to improve the lives of humans through the construction of the Pasadena Freeway.
Likely a callback to Judge Doom, Foghorn Leghorn plays the CEO of Acme, the mastermind behind the intentionally harmful cartoon line of products. Acme represents everything wrong with the modern capitalist landscape and the corporate’s chokehold on the legal system, which allows Acme in the film to get away with selling dangerous products and mistreatment of the toons.
Wile E. and the Road Runner are not the only toons featured, as many fan favorites like Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, and Foghorn Leghorn play major roles in the film. And of course, John Cena is featured in the movie as Acme’s scumbag lawyer.
Keen-eyed readers might notice the allusions to the myth of Sisyphus on the movie’s poster, where Wile E. pushes up a large bomb-shaped boulder to the peak of the mountain, represented by the Road Runner. Not only does a major plot thread hinge on the myth, but the plot is structured around losing efforts: the Road Runner can’t be caught, and Acme can’t be toppled.
The Road Runner plays a Chekhov’s gun role in the story: he has no interest in the legal battle and cleverly dodges Acme’s subpoenas through trickery, speed and a bit of cartoon violence. Since he is impossible to catch, the Road Runner acts as a force of nature within the plot, distracting Acme while allowing Kevin and Paige to discover significant evidence against Acme’s case.
When the Road Runner finally enters the movie as a real character, it’s during Wile E.’s and Kevin’s worst moment. While not spoiling the film, I can say that the Road Runner is saved for a wonderful emotional climax near the end of it that should be experienced firsthand.
The animation, from my own criticism, was not handled in the best way. 3D animation can be somewhat rough, which aligns with the troubled development of the film. All characters are animated in 3D except for Bugs Bunny, who appears in his classic 2D form. The models lack shading, which detracts from suspension of disbelief, unlike “Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)” which featured much more impressive integration with the live-action style.
Despite these remarks, the movie’s animation has good aspects to point out. The fundamental principles of animation that “Looney Tunes” are known for are all there: squash and stretch, exaggeration, anticipation and amazing comedic timing.
Every reader of this article should go out and watch “Coyote vs. Acme.” It’s a fun movie for everyone, even a single college student. There’s a little something for everyone: legal drama, a heartfelt character driven narrative, a political message and the famous zany animated cast of the Looney Tunes.