Nov 9, 2023

Warner Bros. shelves are fully completed - Coyotes vs. Coyotes.Acme - for the write-off of taxes.

Warner Bros. Discovery's Bone-head movie-hater management canned yet another fully finished movie. This time it's Acme vs. Coyote, a live-action/animated hybrid based on characters created by animated legend Chuck Jones. The film was originally lit green for streaming at Max, but it later turned out to be enough to be considered for theatrical release.

Reason:

David Zaslav-run WBD's plan requires an estimated書60 million write〜down for a movie worth between 8000 million and 3000 million per deadline report.

This is not the first time that studios have scrapped nearly-finished or finished films as tax write-offs. Last year, Warner Bros. executives had written down the animated feature Scoob.: Holiday haunt as well as live-action movie Batgirl streaming straight.

Deadline reports that the film, directed by Dave Green, which was very well tested with viewers, will not be offered to other companies either, even though Amazon was interested in getting it for its streaming service. Tax write-offs are obviously more valuable to Warner Bros. More than any potential third-party pickup.

Coyote vs Acme was dramatized by Sammy Birch from the satirical work that first appeared in 1990 the New Yorker. In the original piece, Weil E. Coyote is suing his regular weapon supplier, Acme, for a consistently malfunctioning product. The film expanded the story to include his unlucky human lawyer, who takes on Weil E as a client and learns that the former boss of another law firm (played by John Cena) is representing Acme.

Coyotes vs. Acme director Dave Green is understandably heartbroken by the news. He shared his feelings about the cancellation on Twitter:

For three years, I was lucky enough to make a movie about Weil E.Coyote, the most enduring, passionate, and resilient character of all time. I was surrounded by a great team that poured their soul into this project for years. We respect the heritage of all these historical characters and were determined to actually get them right. Along the ride, we were accepted by the test audience, who rewarded us with a great score. More than I'm proud of the final product, I'm devastated by WB's decision. But Wile E.In the spirit of Coyote, resilience and persistence win the day.

His feelings were echoed by others who have watched the movie as Scott Pilgrim takes off showrunner BenDavid Grabinski, who called the movie "The best of its kind since Roger Rabbit:

The Coyote V ACME is a great movie. The best of its kind since Roger Rabbit. It's commercial. It tested well. Reed is very likable. It is beautifully photographed. The animation is great. The ending will make everyone cry fucking. I thought the goal of this business was to make a hit movie - this makes me feel insane. It's a great fucking movie. It is based on a huge IP. It's a crowd delight. What are we doing anymore - I really want to know how we line up from "The Battle of Brazil" to a very effective commercial film that has been removed for tax purposes, and I will never understand this.

Peter Atencio, who also saw the film, wrote: First of all, fuck the business model that encourages this. Secondly, the film is great. I was lucky to see some, and it's hilarious with incredible animation. It's especially disgusting that there's a big gaping hole in the release calendar.

The crew you worked on the film posted reels of behind-the-scenes footage from the film's production in New Mexico:

Meanwhile, a Warner Bros. spokesperson provided the following statement to the film's junking:

With the reboot of Warner Bros. Pictures Animation on May 6, the studio is shifting its global strategy to focus on theatrical releases. In this new direction, we made the difficult decision not to move forward with Coyote vs Acme. We have great respect for the filmmakers, the cast and the crew and are grateful for their contribution to the film.

WBD recently reopened its feature animation division as Warner Bros. Pictures Animation. He is currently developing several animation features, including the musical "Bad Fairy" and an adaptation of Marissa Meyer's novel series "The Chronicle of the Moon." The studio is also planning a number of Dr. Seuss-themed animation features, with a cat in a hat and oh, where you go. Currently, the most distant of the pipelines. From 2026, we plan to release 2 theater animation features per year.

Yesterday, in a disastrous quarterly earnings report, WBD CEO David Zaslav said the company "really couldn't crack the kids." It does not seem that Warner Bros. will "crack" the children anytime soon if they cancel a promising family project based on a beloved and time-tested cartoon character.