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Tag: Looney Tunes

  • HBO Max Working on ‘Looney Tunes’ Musical

    HBO Max Working on ‘Looney Tunes’ Musical

    The whole gang is about to put the tune back in Tunes, as HBO Max and Cartoon Network are actively developing a musical titled Bye Bye Bunny: A Looney Tunes Musical. It‘s the second musical reveal from Warner Bros. Discovery after the Joker sequel was teased to take that direction with Lady Gaga in talks to join as Harley Quinn. According to Deadline, the film will feature an original song and dance numbers, as well as orchestrations of some classic WB musicals. The story is as follows:

    After starring in a long-running Looney Tunes Broadway smash production, an exhausted Bugs Bunny decides it’s time to trade in sold-out shows for life as a regular rabbit. Ever the spotlight opportunist, Daffy Duck attempts to step into the lead role, but his star ambitions are quickly sidetracked when he is kidnapped by an obsessive fan who has more sinister plans for her favorite stage duck. With his ticket to Broadway retirement in danger, Bugs sets off on a rescue mission to find Daffy and, with the help of his Looney Tunes co-stars, hopefully, his joy of performing again.

    Amy Friedman, Warner Bros. Head of Kids & Family Programming, has pointed out that it’ll offer “old Hollywood and Broadway vibes” as it offers the usual mayhem we’re used to from the Looney Tunes. The announcement follows shortly after a preschool series was also announced titled Bugs Bunny Builders. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert‘s Ariel Dumas and Next to Normal‘s Tom Kitt is set to write the screenplay and lyrics. It’ll be interesting to see what this take on the iconic cartoon characters might have to offer for young and old. Here’s hoping Elmer Fudd gets to scream “Kill the wabbit” at least once.

    Source: Deadline

  • Will Forte and Lana Condor Join John Cena in ‘Coyote Vs. Acme’

    Will Forte and Lana Condor Join John Cena in ‘Coyote Vs. Acme’

    Will Forte and Lana Condor are set to join John Cena in the Looney Tunes flick, Coyote Vs. Acme. The news was first reported by Deadline, with the outlet revealing Forte will play the lawyer for Wile E. Coyote, as they work together to go against Forte’s intimidating former boss played by Cena. However, while working together, the duo soon find themselves developing a friendship between man and cartoon, which only makes them all the more determined to win. Details surrounding Condor’s role are being kept under wraps.

    Coyote vs. Acme will focus on Coyote, who after ACME products fail him one too many times in his dogged pursuit of the Roadrunner, decides to hire a billboard lawyer to sue the ACME Corporation. The film is being produced by James Gunn (Peacemaker, Guardians of the Galaxy), who reteams with Cena yet again, and Chris DeFaria.

    The film was written by Samy Burch and is based on the New Yorker humor article “Coyote v. Acme” by Ian Frazier. Dave Green, who has directed Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, will helm the film.

    Coyote vs. Acme will hit theaters on July 21, 2023.

    Source: Deadline.

  • John Cena Joins ‘Looney Tunes’ Spinoff ‘Coyote vs. Acme’

    John Cena Joins ‘Looney Tunes’ Spinoff ‘Coyote vs. Acme’

    It looks like that ain’t all folks, as a new Looney Tunes animated hybrid project is in development titled Coyote vs. Acme. Dave Green will direct the film based on The New Yorker humor article of the same name by Ian Frazier. It’ll follow Wile E. Coyote who tries to sue ACME Corporation after a few too many broken purchases. The project has now cast Peacemaker actor John Cena as the former boss of Coyote’s new lawyer.

    Chris DeFaria is producing the project alongside James Gunn through their Two Monkeys, A Goat and Another, Dead, Monkey Productions. It’ll be based on a screenplay by Samy Burch and may offer a different take on the popular cartoon franchise. It looks like Warner Bros. is all-in on their relationship with Gunn and ready to also explore some non-DC-related projects.

    The concept sounds like a fun departure from previous Looney Tunes projects and might be the one to kick off a new series of films that put the popular cartoon characters in very “human” situations. The Looney Tunes Show did something similar to quite some success and even reinvented Lola Bunny to give her a unique personality. It’ll be interesting to see what the project has to offer and who else might join the cast.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’s Malcolm D. Lee Reveals the Michael Jordan Cameo That Never Happened

    ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’s Malcolm D. Lee Reveals the Michael Jordan Cameo That Never Happened

    There will be spoilers for Space Jam: A New Legacy in this article. Only continue at your own risk.

     

    After a long wait, Space Jam finally got a sequel. Yet, there was a noticeable absence of 1996’s leading man. The first film’s leading man, Michael Jordan, did not return, but the Looney Tunes sure did. LeBron James took over as the central character, whose relationship with his son gets tested when a rogue algorithm tries to take over his status as king. Trapped in the Warner Bros. ServerVerse, he joins together with the classic Looney Tunes to take on Don Cheadle‘s Al-G Rythm and the Goon Squad in a basketball game of the century.

    There are various references throughout the film to the original film, but no sign of the former NBA star. According to director Malcolm. D. Lee, there were plans for him to appear in a post-credit sequence, even if the chances were slim to none. It would’ve even referred to the 202 mini-series The Last Dance by ESPN Films and Netflix by echoing one of his iconic lines from the documentary.

    We were holding out hope, but also knew that the likelihood was going to be very remote. Especially after The Last Dance came out, I was like, we’ve got to be able to do something, even like a tag at the very end after the credits with Bugs showing him the movie and saying, ‘What do you think, Doc?’ And just Jordan going, ‘I took that very personal.’ I wanted to do it! It would have been fantastic, but our movie is our movie and Space Jam is Space Jam

    Luckily, the team did get visits by another Jordan, Michael B. Jordan. It seems he was shooting a project and dropped by the project to hang out with LeBron James. This coincidence led to one of the film’s best jokes when Sylvester gets him mixed up with the first film’s protagonist.

    But it’s one of the greatest jokes that I’ve ever put in one of my movies — and it’s super unique to Space Jam. There’s no other movie where you could play this joke. Warner Bros. wanted really badly to use it in marketing, and I was like, you cannot do that, because this joke is too good to sacrifice.

    It’s sad they couldn’t get Jordan to return, but it did make way for a very unique joke that, as the director points out, only Space Jam could make. Luckily, they talked the marketing team out of wasting it in the trailers. The film managed to beat out Blck Widow at the Box Office, but it’s uncertain if we might see this franchise return with more entries moving forward. Still, it was great seeing Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and the rest of the Looney Tunes back on the silver screen. Even if this franchise doesn’t continue, it’s about time they get more films.

    Source: Entertainment Weekly

  • ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’ LeBron James’ Tune Squad Jersey Revealed

    ‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’ LeBron James’ Tune Squad Jersey Revealed

    Still amazed that Space Jam is getting a sequel. Also, this has been in development since 2014. Yeah, the LeBron James sequel has been in development for six years by now and will act as a reboot to the franchise. It’s also crazy to think that the Looney Tunes last film in cinemas was 2003’s Looney Tunes: Back in Action. Time really does fly. We got some teases from LeBron James here and there but nothing major. Now, in a special tweet by the LeBron James Family Foundation, we got a full look at the Tunes Squad jersey.

    It’s certainly a departure from the original design that was mainly white. There are some similarities though, mostly in the red lining around the neck and arms, as well as a larger version of the Looney Tunes logo. Seeing this design is kind of strange, as Nike did tease an updated version of the original outfits back in January.

    Perhaps we will see these designs in the film but they get replaced by the updated colors. The strange thing is, this is a Looney Tunes film and we haven’t seen anyone from the cast. No reveal of Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck in the outfit. We don’t even know if they’ll get a redesign similar to the latest incarnation Looney Tunes Cartoons. These take inspiration from the earliest designs, as Bugs has yellow gloves rather than the white ones we see in Space Jam. Hopefully, they will start actually teasing the animated cast as there is a strong focus purely on LeBron James. This tease might also be building up towards a trailer. There could be a chance that we will see the other characters one-by-one in the newly design outfit. As a nostalgic fan of the original, I am excited to see what they’ll do with a reboot of this franchise.

    Source: Deadline, Twitter (New Outfit), Twitter (Nike)