Coyote vs. Acme star Will Forte has spoken out for the first time about the film’s fate after Warner Bros. shelved it for a tax write-down.
In a social media post addressed to the film’s cast and crew on Thursday, Forte wrote, “I know that a lot of you haven’t gotten a chance to see our movie. And sadly, it’s looking like you never will.”
The SNL alum continued by saying that when Warner Bros. announced back in November that it was axing Coyote vs. Acme, despite production already being complete, he assumed, “this thing must be a hunk of junk.”
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“But then I saw it,” he wrote. “And it’s incredible.”
“Super funny throughout, visually stunning, sweet, sincere, and emotionally resonant in a very earned way,” he said. “As the credits rolled, I just sat there thinking how lucky I was to be a part of something so special. That quickly turned to confusion and frustration. This was the movie they’re not going to release?”
“Look, when it comes to Hollywood business stuff, I don’t know shit about shit,” Forte continued. “Even when a movie tests very well (like ours), there’s no guarantee that it’s gonna be a hit. And at the end of the day, the people who paid for this movie can obviously do whatever they want with it. It doesn’t mean I have to like it (I fucking hate it). Or agree with it. And it doesn’t mean that this movie is anything less than magnificent. You would be so proud of it—a movie that should be seen, but won’t. Please know that all the years and years of hard work, dedication and love that you put into this movie shows in every frame.”
When Warner Bros. called off Coyote vs. Acme’s release last November, the outraged response from Hollywood heavyweights, the internet, and the film’s creators was enough to prompt the studio to walk back its decision and announce that it would offer Coyote for sale to another studio.
Ultimately, though, Warner Bros. rejected offers from Amazon, Paramount, and Netflix to buy Coyote vs. Acme. A source close to the production told TheWrap earlier this month that they believed the studio would therefore “unceremoniously delete” the comedy, “never to be seen again.”
Coyote is the third completed movie to be shelved by Warner Bros. since Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav took over in 2022; that year, the studio also canned Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt.
