'Coyote vs. Acme' cast held funeral screening after WB shelved it
The Coyote vs. Acme cast and crew held a private "funeral screening" after Warner Bros. shelved the live-action-animation hybrid, believing the Looney Tunes comedy might never reach audiences. The emotional gathering let filmmakers share the finished movie before Ketchup Entertainment acquired it and set an Aug. 28 theatrical release.
When a studio shelves a completed film, cast and crew rarely get closure. For the team behind Coyote vs. Acme, that uncertainty led to an unusual tribute: a "funeral screening" held while the project appeared locked in the Warner Bros. vault. The event has become a defining story as the movie finally heads to theaters—one worth tracking on our Streaming & TV Alerts hub.
Key Takeaways
- Warner Bros. shelved Coyote vs. Acme before Ketchup Entertainment bought the title in March 2025.
- Cast and crew organized a "funeral screening" to share the finished film while its future remained uncertain.
- Star Lana Condor described the experience as devastating, comparing it to an actual funeral.
- Director Dave Green called the mood "celebratory," likening it to a New Orleans jazz funeral.
- The Looney Tunes comedy opens in theaters Aug. 28, 2026.
Why Did the Coyote vs. Acme Team Hold a Funeral Screening?
According to Variety, the screening arose from a simple question: what do you do when you think your movie will never see the light of day? Warner Bros. had shelved the project, leaving hundreds of collaborators unsure whether their work would ever be shown.
Director Dave Green said there were "many, many times" he believed Coyote vs. Acme would never come out. Rather than let the film disappear quietly, the team gathered friends, fellow filmmakers, and key cast members who had never seen the final cut.
What Did Lana Condor and Dave Green Say About It?
At the film's Los Angeles premiere on Wednesday, star Lana Condor reflected on walking into the funeral screening. "It's so horrible," she told Variety. "It's like, really easy to blame yourself. You almost feel like, 'Was I the problem?' You're devastated for the hundreds of people who have worked on this far longer than I have. It feels like a funeral."
Green offered a contrasting but complementary view. Despite his disappointment over the shelving, he described the screening as "celebratory"—"emotional in so many ways." He compared it to a New Orleans funeral with a jazz band marching up the street: mourning mixed with celebration.
Green noted the room "played so hot" as he finally shared the completed film with Will Forte and Condor, neither of whom had previously seen the final version. Other cast members include John Cena, Tone Bell, Martha Kelly, Luis Guzmán, P.J. Byrne, and John Early.
When Will Coyote vs. Acme Hit Theaters?
Relief arrived in March 2025 when Ketchup Entertainment acquired Coyote vs. Acme from Warner Bros. and scheduled a theatrical release. Audiences will finally see the comedy on Aug. 28.
The film follows Looney Tunes villain Wile E. Coyote as he takes the Acme Corporation to court after countless injuries from its gadgets—rocket-powered skates, anvils, and more. Condor and Forte lead the live-action cast in the hybrid format.
The funeral screening story underscores how precarious finished films can be in today's studio landscape—and how deeply crews invest in work that studios may never release. For Condor, Green, and their collaborators, Aug. 28 marks something closer to a resurrection than a funeral.