Coyote vs. Acme was well worth the wait for a movie we almost weren’t able to see. The movie was originally supposed to come out in the summer of 2023, but Warner Bros. decided to shelve it in favor of a tax write-off. Thankfully, through word of mouth and the #ReleaseCoyoteVsAcme campaign, Ketchup Entertainment bought the distribution rights and was able to save the film. It could have gone straight to streaming, but I’m so thankful that it’s actually getting the big-screen debut it deserves. Fans expressed just how much interest they had in this film, and everyone who worked on it knew they had something special that audiences should be able to see.
I absolutely loved it. The movie is set in its own world, with no connection to previous Looney Tunes movies or shows. They’re not coming from the basketball courts to the courtroom. We’re introduced to a world where cartoons and humans simply live alongside each other, without any explanation or mention of Warner Bros. Studios. The story starts in 1992 with a conspiracy theory surrounding the Acme Corporation. Fast-forward to the present, where Wile E. Coyote is still chasing the Road Runner and continuously suffering from the failures of Acme’s products. After seeing a television advertisement, Wile E. gets an “idea”: sue the Acme Corporation for all the years of failed products and injuries.
Enter Kevin Avery, played by Will Forte. He carries the movie so well, and his humor works really well with his silent co-star, Wile E. Coyote. Lana Condor plays the eager Paige Avery, Kevin’s niece, who helps her uncle ultimately realize that this could be a big case. On the Acme Corporation’s side, Buddy Crane, played by John Cena, is the company’s lawyer and an old rival of Kevin’s from Harvard Law School. The two play very well against each other in the courtroom, resulting in some hysterical courtroom drama. All the human actors work so well in this film.
Foghorn Leghorn plays a menacing Acme executive who wants Buddy to silence Kevin and stop the Coyote’s lawsuit. Many of the most recognizable Looney Tunes characters appear throughout the movie, playing various roles. Although most have no previous connection to each other, each Tune still feels true to their original personality. A certain mysterious “wabbit” plays a whistleblower, Daffy Duck is a former Acme employee who has been committed to a psychiatric hospital, and Tweety serves as a henchman. Although they are playing roles, they’re still basically themselves. Not every major Looney Tunes character gets a spotlight, but many are seen in the background. One or two characters even get great use out of a quick cameo.
What I really appreciate is that the characters aren’t being updated or modernized just for the sake of making them feel current. There’s no rapping Porky Pig, fart jokes, or characters constantly making pop-culture references. They’re simply allowed to be themselves, and it works wonderfully. They still feel exactly like the Looney Tunes characters we know and love.
The voice cast is also fantastic, with many of the Tunes voiced by actual well-known, long-standing Looney Tunes voice actors. No stunt casting here. Eric Bauza is like Mel Blanc reincarnated, voicing most of the classic characters. Candi Milo takes on several female characters originally voiced by June Foray, while Jim Cummings returns as Taz, a character he has voiced on and off since the early 1990s. A big round of applause for their dedication to voicing these beloved, iconic characters.
Overall, it’s a very fun picture with a runtime of 103 minutes. There are classic gags galore and lots of references to the Looney Tunes franchise. There are so many laughs that you might miss some as the next one comes at you. Animation-wise, it looks like there’s a combination of both traditional drawing and cel shading, which is more noticeable with some background characters. But the movie has a solid story, a top-notch cast, heart, humor, and plenty of twists & turns. Oddly enough, there’s no “That’s All Folks!” at the end of the credits, but I like to think that just means there are more Looney Tunes movies soon to come!
Coyote vs. Acme opens Friday, August 28, 2026.
Zach Haumesser is a professional puppeteer and digital creator, as well as an animation and Looney Tunes enthusiast. He went viral in 2016 after delivering standard safety and arrival instructions on a Southwest Airlines flight using Looney Tunes character impressions.
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Funny, clever, and faithful to its animated roots, Coyote vs. Acme proves the long-shelved film was well worth the wait.