In 2023, Warner Bros. Discovery angered Hollywood creators and animation fans alike when it revealed that the studio planned to shelve the completed live-action/animated film Coyote vs. Acme in favor of a write off that would give the company a tax credit. Online campaigns failed to get Warner Bros. to reverse course, but now a suitor for the film has reportedly emerged.
According to Deadline, Ketchup Entertainment — the studio that released The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie last weekend — is in talks with Warner Bros. to pick up all rights for Coyote vs. Acme for $50 million. Warner Bros. previously offered the film to other studios for $75 million — which would have covered the budget — but there were no takers at that price. The report stresses that the deal is not finalized and there’s still a chance it could fall through. But if it goes forward, Ketchup plans to secure a theatrical release for Coyote vs. Acme in 2026.
Ketchup previously saved The Day the Earth Blew Up from meeting the same fate as Coyote vs. Acme, but so far, the return on that investment has been a dismal $3.2 million domestically and $6.1 million worldwide. Coyote vs. Acme would have to significantly outperform those numbers to turn a profit. It’s also unclear how Ketchup can put up that kind investment, especially when the studio only took in $2 million for Hellboy: The Crooked Man last year against a $20 million budget.
Coyote vs. Acme was directed by Dave Green from a story by DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn, Jeremy Slater, and Samy Burch, with Burch getting sole credit on the screenplay. It’s inspired by the long-running Road Runner Looney Tunes cartoons featuring Wile E. Coyote, whose attempts to catch the bird with Acme’s gadgets have always failed. In this film, the Coyote finally sues Acme Corporation, and Will Forte plays his lawyer. John Cena co-stars as Acme’s primary lawyer and the personal nemesis of Forte’s character. Lana Condor, P. J. Byrne, Tone Bell, and Martha Kelly also have roles in the film.
