Warner Bros. Discovery Will Shelve ‘Coyote Vs. Acme’ Despite Netflix And Amazon’s “Handsome” Offers For The Rights: Report

It looks like yet another film from Warner Bros. Discovery will never see the light of day.

A report from The Wrap claims Warner Bros. execs opted to shelve the live-action/animated film Coyote vs. Acme, starring Will Forte and various Looney Tunes characters, despite receiving “handsome” offers from Amazon, Netflix, and Paramount.

According to the report, the studio initially wanted to cancel the movie back in November, but the decision was swiftly met with backlash, especially when the movie gained more support after early screenings. They instead allowed the filmmakers to shop the movie around to other studios, where it was “received well.”

Amazon, Netflix, and Paramount all submitted their own offers for the movie rights, with Paramount even proposing a theatrical release. But Warner Bros. reportedly rejected the offers when they failed to meet the $75 – $80 million it was looking for. The company also didn’t allow for counter-offers.

Now, it looks like their time is up. Warner Bros. has already indicated that it would take a tax write-off, which could make the company $35 – $40 million.

Coyote producer Chris DeFaria says he received a phone call in early January from a company executive who said, “They just want to get this behind them. They want to close the books.”

The report further claims that the four Warner Bros. executives who decided to shelve the movie, which included CEO and president David Zaslav, had never seen a finished version of the movie.

This wouldn’t be the first time the company has decided to shelve a film despite public outcry. Warner Bros. announced it would delete Batgirl, a $90 million superhero movie starring Michael Keaton and Leslie Grace, after deeming it “unreleasable.”

But, the outlet notes that Coyote vs. Acme tested very well before the decision was made.

Paul Scheer, who attended a screening of the movie that helped rally support initially, praised the film for how it revived these beloved animated characters.

“What was so exciting was that it felt like the film captured the voice of the Looney Tunes that we love in a way none of the other feature versions have ever done,” he told The Wrap.

Now, it looks like that film will never make it to its intended audience as Warner Bros. Discovery continues this concerning practice.