🔗 Share this article

The original director 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 in the aftermath of the film's theatrical release.

Zucker's Critique of the New Film's Style

During a fresh discussion, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, along with his partners Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, made famous in Airplane! and the three original Naked Gun films.

"Jerry, my sibling, and Jim Abrahams, our associate, began creating spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we originated our own style – and we did that so well that it appears simple, clearly. Others began imitating it, like the new film's producer for the new Naked Gun. He totally missed it."

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

Leslie Nielsen's Legacy

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, remarking: "They tried to replace Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and he cannot be replaced. No one else can do that."

Previous Reservations and Changing Stance

The filmmaker had earlier expressed opposition to plans to go ahead with a Naked Gun reboot, saying in 2024 that he was "not excited about having the franchise given to different individuals". He continued: "I have not been approached to make a cameo or participate in scripting. Whether or not they're going to succeed with it, this style of parody, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it's not easy."

However, after a string of positive reviews and impressive financial performance following its launch in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a strong market for comedy in cinemas, and spoof in particular."

Renewed Disapproval Over Budget Concerns

However, Zucker returned to the attack in the new interview, criticising the amount of money involved. "Large financial outlays and humor are incompatible, and in the new Naked Gun, you could see that they invested heavily on scenes full of technical pizzazz while trying to copy our style."

Zucker further noted: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that seems to be the sole motivation why they wanted to do a fresh installment."