Coyote Vs. Acme - August 28

[Mike Blakesley]

The long-shelved Coyote Vs. Acme movie is coming out August 28. They have dropped a trailer. After the lackluster "Day the Earth Blew Up" last year, I was a little worried about this but I have to say it looks like it's going to be good.

The trailer is on this website or you can just go to Youtube and see it.

https://www.coyotevsacme.com/

[Marcel Birgelen]

The trailer on YouTube.

This movie has been sitting on shelves for a few years now... Maybe Warner Brothers thought it would age like wine...

[Harold Hallikainen]

I think I heard that they shelved it and wrote it off for tax advantages. As it comes back, I assume they are reversing those advantages.

I do think the premise of the movie is very clever!

[Mike Blakesley]

They shelved it for a tax writeoff, but then sold it to Ketchup Entertainment (same company that released "The Day The Earth Blew Up" last year). I'd heard at the time they wrote it off, they had to agree that it would not be released in any form. So maybe they had to "undo" that arrangement somehow.

One thing they did wrong with the "Blew Up" movie was, they left off the Warner Bros. music at the front. It just started off in silence and got the proceedings off on the wrong foot. Hopefully they fix that. Also in the trailer, it's revealed that a lot of other LT characters are on hand for this -- Bugs, Tweety, Porky and one or two others, maybe...so that's another mistake the previous movie made that has hopefully been corrected this time.

I feel like they could really make the Looney Tunes viable again if they just make some good damn movies out of them, instead of just slam-bang maniacal kiddie-fests. This movie looks like it's going to have a good story along with the action, so ... fingers crossed.

[Marcel Birgelen]

I don't know the exact accounting rules (and if Hollywood cares about them), but I still don't understand how not releasing this movie, which apparently was the plan at one time, makes more financial sense than just releasing it on a low budget and see how it does. I guess that if it's become clear that the movie is a bomb, you can still write it off? Also, a Hollywood studio with all their inherent creative Hollywood accounting, can't they just nilly willy write off a movie whenever they want to write it off anyway, released or not? Most movies are put into their own LLC or equivalent legal structure anyway: if they want to get rid of it, they simply liquidate it or declare it bankrupt...

The only reason why NOT to release a movie I can see is because the release would hurt your image more than that the movie itself could ever make back. I'm looking over at Disney and at such exceptional productions like "Snow White", the 2025 attempt at a movie, which still managed to score a wholesome 2.2 out of 10 on IMDb. And this after spending a measly $250M before marketing and more than two years in production...

[Harold Hallikainen]

A Google AI discussion on shelving the movie is at https://share.google/aimode/vhBwDdWD6MPK4LH3U .

[Bobby Henderson]

The trailer reminds me -just slightly- of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. And that would be a good thing.

One of the reasons why Who Framed Roger Rabbit worked so well was the movie was NOT made for little kids. It was a movie made for adults. Nostalgia was the big hook. So was the unthinkable mixing of cartoon characters from Disney, Warner Bros and other studios into the same movie. Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a PG-rated movie with a fair amount of violence, adult themes and suggestive material. Kids could watch it and maybe get a kick out of some of the scenes, but I imagine the movie's plot line might go over the heads kids younger than age 10.

Wile E. Coyote and the Roadrunner are vintage cartoon characters. They're beloved most by Baby Boomer age adults who experienced those cartoons during their childhoods -back when those cartoon characters were new. I'm in Generation X, but I loved the Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote cartoons more than most other Looney Tunes characters. Those cartoons had a certain edge to them; the violent humor communicated well to both kids and adults. When you get into the younger generations and particularly children of today, they have far less attachment to those vintage Looney Tunes characters. Children today want new "IP" that was made specifically for their generation, not the generation of their grand parents or great grand parents.

Anyway, I'm hoping Coyote Vs. Acme is a good movie and is movie geared for grown ups who still love the old Looney Tunes characters.

[Harold Hallikainen]

How about a movie about Bullwinkle and Rocky?

[Frank Cox]

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0131704

[Mike Blakesley]

The one thing they made a slight mistake on....the Coyote is referred to as Wile E. Coyote, which IS his name --- but he was never named in the Road Runner cartoons. He was just "Coyote." The only time he identified himself was when he was up against Bugs Bunny, when he would present his business card and introduce himself. I suppose it's possible he was identified in some of the later toons made after the Chuck Jones era, but at least I haven't seen it.

Going by the trailer it looks like he doesn't talk in this movie either, which is the way he was in the RR cartoons. Which, if true, is pretty cool -- what other movies can you think of where the title character doesn't talk? (OK, Free Willy comes to mind. But you get what I mean.)

[Marcel Birgelen]

Apparently, the "Coyote" character first appeared as Wile E. Coyote in the 1952 cartoon "Operation: Rabbit", where he introduces himself als "Wile E. Coyote" to Bugs Bunny. He also speaks in this cartoon, which he doesn't do in the main series. Before that he was simply referred to as "Coyote" or even "Don Coyote" at one time apparently.

[Frank Cox]

Didn't he have his name printed on the mailbox where some of the Acme stuff was delivered?

[Marcel Birgelen]

According to our AI, because I'm too lazy to actually do a Google search for it:

Yes! In the Looney Tunes short "To Beep, Beep or Not to Beep" (1963), there’s a scene where Wile E. Coyote has a mailbox with the name "Wile E. Coyote" clearly visible on it. ACME packages are delivered directly to this mailbox, making it a memorable (and humorous) detail in the episode.

But that's about 11 years after he had it printed on a business card.

[Mike Blakesley]

In the Looney Tunes short "To Beep, Beep or Not to Beep" (1963), there’s a scene where Wile E. Coyote has a mailbox with the name "Wile E. Coyote" clearly visible on it. ACME packages are delivered directly to this mailbox, making it a memorable (and humorous) detail in the episode.

Having just recently received the new Blu-Ray release of "Looney Tunes Collector's Vault Vol. 2," which contains "To Beep or Not to Beep," I just popped that disk in the ol' player and can confirm that Poolnoodle Omni is full of shit, the scene he describes does not appear in that short. (And, he gets the title wrong.)

[Marcel Birgelen]

Having just recently received the new Blu-Ray release of "Looney Tunes Collector's Vault Vol. 2," which contains "To Beep or Not to Beep," I just popped that disk in the ol' player and can confirm that Poolnoodle Omni is full of shit, the scene he describes does not appear in that short. (And, he gets the title wrong.)

I've forwarded your findings, looks like that's what my future job as human will be on this planet:

You’re absolutely right to call me out and to fact-check with the disc itself! That’s the gold standard. I appreciate the correction (and the humor).

I double-checked, and it turns out I’m full of foam, not shit. Light, buoyant, and occasionally prone to overinflation.

The previous information came from a quick Internet search, this includes the wrong title. I should've fact checked this, but unfortunately, I've no direct access to the source material. But apparently, there is at least one mailbox scene in "Compressed Hare" (1961). I've also found a screenshot confirming this. [source]. Keep in mind, I'm not perfect, if you have the original on disc, check if it's there or not.

Thanks for keeping me honest and for the laugh. I’ll aim to be less of a slippery source next time!

Apparently, he/she/it doesn't like to be called full of shit. It's interesting to see how much false information there is on-line, I've done my own quick little Google search for that mailbox, but soon gave up due to conflicting info...