Coyote vs. Acme: the unlikely crossover between Roger Rabbit and Better Call Saul

Listen, there's quite a story here, because the production history of this film is almost as interesting as the movie itself.

In 2023, Warner Bros. decided to cancel its release even though it was finished and had cost around $70 million to make. The reason was purely financial: the company hoped to claim a tax write-off of around $30 million by shelving the project.

The decision sparked protests from film professionals and Looney Tunes fans, until Warner agreed to negotiate distribution. Ketchup Entertainment eventually acquired the rights in 2025 and released it in 2026.

Well, this would just be another story in the company's restructuring if it weren't for one detail: the film is precisely about a small, defenseless character who decides to take on a huge corporation that only cares about making money..

In other words, Warner itself ended up starring in an unintentional satire of its own film, with its little movie fighting the sorry fate the big studio had planned for it.

Cue the memes.

Fortunately, Coyote vs. Acme has made it into cinemas. The result is a very entertaining family comedy, visually superb, that keeps the Looney Tunes humor intact.

It would have been a shame to miss it.

What's Coyote vs. Acme about?

After spending his entire life buying rockets, explosives, catapults and all sorts of contraptions to catch the Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote decides to sue ACME, the company that makes them, because he considers them defective.

He hires Kevin Avery (Will Forte), a rather mediocre lawyer who handles small claims and accident cases. Together they must face the multinational's powerful lawyers, including the character played by John Cena..

Incidentally, the idea isn't new: it comes from a satirical article by Ian Frazier published in The New Yorker in 1990. Thirty-six years later, it has become a film.

One with two very, very obvious inspirations.

Roger Rabbit is the mother

The best thing about Coyote vs. Acme is undoubtedly its visuals.

The film combines live-action actors with animated characters, inevitably recalling Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Robert Zemeckis's wonderful 1988 film.

But almost forty years have passed, and it shows.

The integration of animated characters into real settings is far more accomplished, with a naturalness that quickly makes you forget you're watching two technically different worlds.

The characters share settings, handle objects and interact without anything feeling out of place. Quite the opposite: even in the most outrageous scenes, everything feels entirely convincing..

For fans of both animation and live-action cinema, it's a visual delight.

A brief mention is due here to Dave Green, its director, who previously made Earth to Echo (2014) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), two productions where he also worked with digital characters.

His experience with this sort of film shows. There's even an interesting technical detail: during filming they used a life-size Wile E. Coyote puppet so the actors could interact with it, making their performances easier—or at least closer to what they're used to—instead of staring into empty space.

And around 95% of the film was shot on location in Albuquerque, a decision that makes the movie feel more believable.

And Better Call Saul is the father

The other major reference that came to mind while watching was Better Call Saul..

And not just because both stories star lawyers.

Kevin Avery is incredibly reminiscent of Jimmy McGill, good old Saul Goodman: a small-time lawyer used to minor cases who ends up involved in something much bigger than anything he normally handles.

They even look alike.

But that's not all: there are also the ads he makes for the law firm and Albuquerque itself, where both stories take place.

That's too many coincidences not to think of the series.

I haven't found confirmation that it's a deliberate homage, but the parallels are there.

Of course, Coyote vs. Acme doesn't have the narrative depth of Better Call Saul. It mainly uses courtroom drama as an excuse for comedy, but the comparison inevitably springs to mind.

A lovable Coyote and plenty of Looney Tunes

Another thing that surprised me most is how the film treats Wile E. Coyote.

We're used to seeing him as a wicked animal obsessed with catching the Road Runner, forever devising impossible inventions that end up blowing up in his face.

Here he retains those traits, but we discover a far more endearing side to him, making him a character who inspires affection—something I hadn't expected, and it works.

The film also preserves the Looney Tunes' classic slapstick humor: crashes, explosions, absurd situations and appearances by familiar characters that fit the story perfectly.

There are even little hidden tributes for die-hard fans. For example, the law firm Avery, Jones & Maltese is named after Tex Avery, Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese, three key figures in the history of these cartoons.

It's a nod you don't need to recognize to enjoy the film, and it never gets in the way.

A family film with no greater pretensions

One of the strengths of Coyote vs. Acme is that it works brilliantly as family entertainment.

Children and adults can enjoy it together because its humor is so direct. It doesn't need to build different narrative layers to satisfy audiences of different ages, as Pixar does.

Everything here is more straightforward. The comic situations work on their own and viewers just have to go along for the ride.

But this also points to its main limitation.

The film doesn't aspire to much beyond giving us a fun time. Its story is simple, its development fairly conventional, and it doesn't aim to explore its themes much further.

That's not really a criticism, because it achieves exactly what it sets out to do. Just don't look for more, because there isn't any.

Conclusion: is Coyote vs. Acme worth watching?

Yes, without a doubt.

Coyote vs. Acme is a funny, visually accomplished film with all the spirit of the Looney Tunes.

I especially enjoyed how it blends animation and live action, probably its greatest achievement.

Its only sin is that it doesn't aim very high. It's a simple comedy that sets out to entertain for a little over ninety minutes, and succeeds.

A good family film, perfect to watch with children or simply to enjoy again those cartoons that gave us so many great times.

We should be grateful that Ketchup Entertainment rescued it from Warner Bros.' drawer of forgotten films, because it's well worth watching.

Coyote vs. Acme: technical details

Item	Information
Original title	Coyote vs. Acme
Release year	2026
Country	United States
Director	Dave Green
Screenplay	Samy Burch
Story	Samy Burch, James Gunn and Jeremy Slater
Cast	Will Forte, John Cena, Lana Condor and P. J. Byrne
Music	Steven Price
Genre	Comedy, animation and adventure
Runtime	102 minutes
Release in Spain	September 18, 2026
Distributor in Spain	Beta Fiction Spain
Age rating	Not recommended for children under 7
My rating	3.5/5