Coyote vs. Acme
August 14th, 2026
MOVIE: COYOTE VS. ACME
STARRING: WILL FORTE, JOHN CENA, LANA CONDOR, ERIC BAUZA
DIRECTED BY: DAVE GREEN
AMovieGuy.com’s RATING: 3 STARS (Out of 4)
RATED: PG
RUN TIME: 101 MINUTES
Warner Bros. didn’t think Coyote vs. Acme was a slam dunk, and after you see it, you might wonder what kind of idiot would shelve something this enjoyable. I can’t speak for other children, but my son loves Looney Tunes, from old Bugs Bunny episodes to new episodes on HBO Max. They don’t quite match the great days of Mel Blanc and Chuck Jones, but they still have the spirit, the good gags, and plenty of laughs. It’s that can-do, never-give-up spirit that David Zaslav and the rest of Warner Bros. forgot about, because Coyote vs. Acme is an absolute laugh riot, on top of being the kind of underdog movie that deserves to be seen with a big audience laughing along with it.
For Coyote vs. Acme, the premise is simple: take the bit about Wile E. Coyote constantly hunting the Road Runner with the help of ACME products, which always backfire on him, and have him sue the company for all of their faulty products. The Coyote walks into the law office of Kevin Avery (Will Forte), a lawyer who runs ads on TV hoping to convince animated characters to sue companies for their negligence. The catch is that he hopes to settle quickly. But after a filing error, Coyote ends up suing ACME and its sour-faced CEO, Buddy Crane (John Cena), for all of their products. Now, the Road Runner-obsessed character, along with his human friends, must work to build a winning case against a corporate juggernaut.
Similar to other films where animation and live-action people are brought together, Coyote vs. Acme is a hilarious merging of Looney Tunes gags with the real world. The screenplay by Samy Burch, James Gunn, and Jeremy Slater takes its cues from what makes Wile E. Coyote such a fun character in the first place: his unrelenting quest to catch that Road Runner at all costs. His human counterparts are a ragtag team of lawyers who also have that underdog status, with Forte leading the charge as the lovable working stiff. His entire getup- a mustache, disheveled suit, heart of gold, and cautious optimism- makes him the perfect pairing with the Coyote. The two of them have more in common than they realize.
Unpredictably, Coyote vs. Acme finds the perfect balance between big laughs and an actual courtroom drama. Pianos are falling on cars, constantly failing rocket skates, and the fact that the Coyote only speaks through handheld signs, all of which deliver big laughs. There is also the trial, which becomes just as intriguing as a Perry Mason episode- only with a lot more explosions. Plenty of great character cameos include Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Porky Pig, who constantly find themselves getting hurt by accident. It’s a tried-and-true Looney Tunes movie.
The three-star rating I’m giving Coyote vs. Acme is still lower than I expected, not because it isn’t funny, but because it isn’t a constant laugh fest, and that’s what I wanted. However, there’s still a good story here and a brilliant idea: mocking the current state of corporate greed that dominates our society. Similar to the divide in Who Framed Roger Rabbit between Toons and humans, Coyote vs. Acme is one of the biggest statements against billionaires that animated cinema can make. Plus, it still delivers a plethora of gut-busting laughs.
The fact that it even made it to theaters means that the Coyote won the battle of Coyote vs. Acme. Just don’t expect him to give up on chasing his dream- to capture that Road Runner once and for all. No matter how many times he blows up, smashes into a wall, falls into a canyon, or gets run over by a train.
Never change, Coyote. Never change.
3 STARS
COYOTE VS. ACME IS PLAYING IN THEATERS EVERYWHERE ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 28TH, 2026.
Written by: Leo Brady
