Coyote vs. Acme is Not Canceled Yet Says Warner Bros. Discovery Spokesperson

Warner Bros. appear to have once again failed to completely rule out Coyote vs. Acme being shelved, with new comments giving a glimmer of hope to the controversial animated/live-action hybrid movie. Having started out as a regular film, the John Cena-starring Looney Tunes flick has quickly become a thorn in the side of Warner Bros. after it was reported to be heading to the “tax write-off” pile within the studio. Now, after several high profile calls for the movie to be released and a fan campaign against its scrapping, it looks like the project is actually still alive and could be released yet.

Although the release of Coyote vs. Acme in any form is still at this stage seen as unlikely, a new report in New York Times Magazine has boosted the belief that there is a positive spin to be put on the current position of the movie. In the latest update, which follows several previous conflicting reports, a WBD spokesperson was said to have revealed that rumors the $70 million budgeted movie would save the studios around $35-40 million if it goes in the vault forever are “inaccurate.” Furthermore, they confirmed with the publication that the final fate of Coyote vs. Acme remains very undecided.

It is clear that this is a movie with many supporters, from those who have worked on the film, to those who have seen it at test screenings, and fans who just want to be able to see it for themselves. After several months of rumors, waiting, and, ultimately, disappointment at the almost irreversible decision to not release the movie, any release would surely net WBD much more than the amount they would save by locking it away – whatever the true amount turns out to be.

Coyote vs. Acme Has More Than Just Fan Support

There have been several instances of fan campaigns appearing to achieve eventual releases of “lost projects.” From TV show renewals on the likes of Warrior Nun and Manifest, to Zack Snyder’s Justice League, fan power can go a long way, if it leads to the belief that there is still a profit to me made from a movie to show that has seemingly bitten the dust. Coyote vs. Acme is slightly different, because this time it is not just the fans pushing for the film to be released.

Eric Bauza, who voices Wile E. Coyote in the movie, made his case during an awards ceremony appearance last month, and Will Forte, who portrays the lawyer defending the accident-prone character, also added his voice to the crowd, saying:

“I know that a lot of you haven’t gotten a chance to see our movie. And sadly, it’s looking like you never will. When I first heard that our movie was getting ‘deleted,’ I hadn’t seen it yet. So I was thinking what everyone else must have been thinking: this thing must be a hunk of junk. But then I saw it. And it’s incredible. Super funny throughout, visually stunning, sweet, sincere, and emotionally resonant in a very earned way. As the credits rolled, I just sat there thinking how lucky I was to be a part of something so special. That quickly turned to confusion and frustration. This was the movie they’re not going to release?”

The comedy of errors that has seen Coyote vs. Acme sitting on a balance, tipping between save or scrap, is a scenario that could almost have come from a Looney Tunes cartoon itself. Which way the scales end up is apparently still something that no one can make a final decision on.