Original Naked Gun Director Renews Attack on New Star-Led Naked Gun Revival

The filmmaker behind the classic of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has renewed his verbal assault concerning the recent reboot featuring Liam Neeson, following a short period where he seemed to adopt a more conciliatory tone following the premiere of the film's cinema debut.

Director's Disapproval of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

During a fresh discussion, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and previously the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "completely failed to grasp" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, along with his collaborators Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, popularized in Airplane! and the three original Naked Gun films.

"My brother, Jerry, and our partner, Jim Abrahams, began creating spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we originated our own style – and we executed it so effectively that it looks easy, clearly. People started copying it, like Seth MacFarlane for the recent reboot. He completely misunderstood it."

Zucker continued: "It might appear that we're just randomly trying ideas to see what sticks, but we're not. Consideration is involved."

The Irreplaceable Star

The director further stated that it was futile to make the movie without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and passed away in 2010, saying: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the new Naked Gun, and you can't replace him. Nobody else is capable of that."

Earlier Objections and Shifting Tone

The filmmaker had earlier expressed opposition to the decision to proceed with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not excited about having the franchise given to other people". He continued: "They have not contacted me to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. Regardless of if they're going to succeed with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it's not rocket science, but it's not easy."

However, after a series of favorable critiques and strong box office returns following its launch in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just demonstrates there's a healthy audience for comedy in movie theatres, and spoof in particular."

Return to Criticism Over Financial Aspects

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

He added: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that seems to be the sole motivation why they wanted to do a new Naked Gun."

Neil James
Neil James

A tech journalist and digital strategist with over a decade of experience covering emerging technologies and their impact on society.