Andrew Orr
Warner Bros. has reconsidered its decision to not screen animated feature "Coyote Vs. Acme" following significant backlash, and is preparing screenings for a possible acquisition by Apple or other streamers.
The move comes after the film, initially destined for a theatrical release, was unexpectedly canceled, sparking substantial controversy in Hollywood. Most of the surprise around the cancellation was because "Coyote Vs. Acme" is a finished film, unlike other recently canceled Warner Bros projects like "Batgirl" and "Scoob Holiday Haunt" that were still in production.
According to a report from Deadline, Amazon Prime appears to be a leading contender for acquiring the film. That's partly due to Courtenay Valenti, currently at Amazon Studios and MGM, who had previously championed the movie during her tenure at Warner Bros.
Had a lot of fun scoring Coyote Vs Acme. As no-one will be able to hear it now, due to bizarre anti-art studio financial shenanigans I will never understand, here is a bit of behind the scenes footage of our "Meep Meep" Roadrunner choir, with apologies to Tchaikovsky pic.twitter.com/HL7h00rXpp
— Steven Price (@SteveBPrice) November 10, 2023
The film's potential move to Amazon is further supported by the studio's ongoing collaborations with John Cena, the film's star, in upcoming movies like "Heads of State," "Ricky Stanicky," and "Grand Death Lotto."
Warner Bros. shelving "Coyote Vs. Acme" has led to negative reactions from the film community, with accusations directed at Warner Bros executives Michael De Luca, Pam Abdy, and Bill Damaschke. Some rumors claim that these executives have been unfairly blamed for the incident, with justifications such as safeguarding the Looney Toons intellectual property and removing content created under the studio's former leadership.
However, the report says that De Luca and Abdy have no history of terminating films or completed movies initiated by a previous administration throughout their careers.
Ultimately, it may come down to money. Facing financial pressures, the studio has been reassessing its approach to content distribution, with a growing preference for streaming platforms over traditional theatrical releases. It could be part of a broader strategy to adapt to changing market dynamics and manage financial risks more effectively.
Malcolm Owen
Christine McKee
William Gallagher
6 Comments
Acme makes all the best products.
Warner Bros. is yet another victim of the decades-long overproduction of MBAs. Discovery took over WB in a merger that clearly envisions everything as so many interchangeable widgets. HBO is buried in a crappy "Max" app, and in the process, (of note to today's issue) culled half the Looney Tunes archive from the streaming service. To what end, one wonders. Now we have corporate execs looking to bury a completed A-list feature film in order to use it as a tax write-off. This idiocy lives in the realm of execs that cut the R&D department in order to make a good quarterly earnings report so they can get their bonuses.
The fastest way to ensure WB has nothing in the pipeline down the road is to sh*t-can completed films that have already tested well in previews. What major stars, directors or production companies would want to come to Warner Brothers with new projects, when there's a non-zero chance that they could work for years, deliver a good film only to see it buried in a corporate tax filing?
Presumably the Discovery bean-counters had decided they could zero out the promotions budget for this film, toss it in the bin and have the taxpayer cover their what they spent on production. It's all just widgets to them. Now they're getting bad PR about it, so they're shopping it around to other streamers. They've still zeroed out the promotions budget, so if they can get the same or more for streaming rights from Apple or Amazon than they would've gotten from the taxpayer for a write-off, they'll be satisfied.
That still doesn't repair the damage done to their reputation, so check back in about three years for news of a dearth of big-budget productions in the pipeline for what's left of Discovery Warner Brothers. They will, of course, blame it all on the writers' and actors' unions, but we'll all know that it's because they peed in their own Wheaties.
P.S. I have the "Max" App as a result of a Cable subscription package that includes HBO. Discovery Max whatever has just sent me my notice that it will no longer be providing 4K UHD/Atmos content, and will drop from allowing three streams to only two streams. They have become a truly crappy company that cares only about widgets.