🔗 Share this article

The original director of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has renewed his verbal assault concerning the recent reboot featuring Liam Neeson, after briefly appearing to soften his stance in the aftermath of the film's cinema debut.

Zucker's Critique of the New Film's Style

In a recent interview, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "completely failed to grasp" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, along with his partners Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, made famous in Airplane! and the initial trilogy of Naked Gun films.

"Jerry, my sibling, and Jim Abrahams, our associate, started doing spoof comedies five decades in the past, and we originated our own style – and we executed it so effectively that it appears simple, evidently. Others began imitating it, like the new film's producer for the new Naked Gun. He completely misunderstood it."

Zucker continued: "It might appear that we're just throwing stuff up against the wall to see what sticks, but we're not. There's thought behind it."

The Irreplaceable Star

The director further stated that it was futile to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and passed away in 2010, remarking: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and you can't replace him. Nobody else is capable of that."

Previous Reservations and Shifting Tone

Zucker had previously objected to the decision to proceed with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not enthusiastic regarding having the franchise given to other people". Adding: "I have not been approached to make a cameo or be involved in the writing. Whether or not they're going to do a good job with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

Nonetheless, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance following its launch in August, Zucker adopted a more agreeable stance, commenting: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a healthy audience for comedy in movie theatres, and spoof in particular."

Renewed Disapproval Over Financial Aspects

Yet, Zucker returned to the attack in the recent discussion, questioning the financial investment. "Big budgets and comedy are opposites, and in the recent reboot, you could see that they spent a lot of money on scenes with impressive technical effects while trying to copy our style."

Zucker further noted: "Financial motives drive everyone currently, and that seems to be the only reason why they wanted to do a fresh installment."