After years in corporate limbo, the hybrid feature Coyote vs. ACME secured a $50 million distribution deal with Ketchup Entertainment in March 2025, setting a theatrical release for August 28, 2026, after Warner Bros. Discovery previously shelved the $70 million production for a tax write-off.
The Long Road From Production to Corporate Shelving
Directed by Dave Green and based on a satirical New Yorker article by Ian Frazier, the live-action and animation hybrid project was first announced back in 2018. Over its troubled development cycle, the film lost its original director, Chris McKay, and original screenwriters Jon and Josh Silberman, who were replaced by Samy Burch. Filming officially began in early 2022 with an anticipated theatrical debut on July 21, 2023.
Trouble struck in April 2022 when Warner Bros. removed the project from its release schedule. The situation escalated dramatically in November 2023, when studio executives announced that despite the movie being fully completed, it would not be releasing it. Instead, Warner Bros. Discovery opted to take an estimated $30 million tax write-off on the $70 million production, effectively burying the finished film to cut financial losses.
Fan Revolt, Bidding Rejections, and the Ketchup Entertainment Rescue
The cancellation triggered an immediate backlash from fans, industry figures, and artists who directed their frustration squarely at Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav. The public outcry included petitions, industry protests, and a demonstrator in a Wile E. Coyote costume picketing the studio. Voice actor Eric Bauza, who voices 10 characters in the film, went off-script during the Annie Awards as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck to demand the project’s release.
Faced with intense public pressure, the studio reversed course to be shopped around to other studios. However, negotiations stalled after Warner Bros. Discovery rejected bids from major players like Amazon and Netflix because the studio refused to accept less than $75 million for the project.
The stalemate finally broke in March 2025. Ketchup Entertainment—the same distributor behind the 2024 animated release The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Story—acquired the rights to Coyote vs. ACME for $50 million. With the acquisition complete, the film is scheduled to hit movie theaters on August 28, 2026.
Inside the Trailer’s Direct Jabs at Warner Bros.
The newly released trailer makes no effort to hide the real-world friction that preceded its release. The preview features Will Forte as a small-time lawyer specializing in settling cases against the mega-corporation ACME, with Wile E. Coyote as his newest client. Throughout the footage, satirical jokes take direct aim at the studio that originally shelved the project.
Early in the preview, after Wile E. Coyote’s rocket skates explode, the trailer cuts to the Warner Bros. title card with fine print noting that the studio is a wholly owned subsidiary of the ACME Corporation.
Later text brands the feature as The movie ACME doesn't want you to see.
“The ACME corporation is releasing this film for accounting purposes only. We do not condone any of the storylines depicted.”
Foghorn Leghorn, character via Polygon
Broader Industry Fallout and the Streaming Library Shift
The rescue of the Looney Tunes hybrid feature coincides with a broader contraction of classic animation assets across major streaming platforms. As The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Story arrived in theaters via Ketchup Entertainment rather than Warner Bros., the library of classic Looney Tunes cartoons was quietly removed from the Warner Bros.-owned streaming service Max. Tubi subsequently picked up portions of the displaced catalog.
What Stays Unresolved as the Theatrical Date Approaches
While Ketchup Entertainment has locked in an August 28, 2026, release date, long-term questions remain regarding how Hollywood treats completed high-budget projects facing similar tax-incentive calculations.
