Warner Bros. Discovery is seeking more than $70 million from studios bidding for Coyote vs. Acme, the Looney Tunes movie canceled by the studio. The film, whose production is complete, was almost entirely shelved by Warner Bros., who opted to use it for a tax write-off of $30 million. After a few days of public outcry, the studio reversed their decision, shopping the film to interested studios that expressed interest in its release.
Now, Deadline reports Warner Bros. is seeking upwards of $70 million from studios interested in releasing Coyote vs. Acme. This amount would cover the movie’s budget while also turning a small profit for the company. This means whichever interested party decides to scoop up the film, they’ll have to pay its studio even more than they spent making it.
Who Will Win Coyote Vs. Acme’s Bidding War?
Deadline also reports Netflix and Paramount are leading the charge in the ongoing bidding war, with Paramount seeking to release the movie in theaters. Amazon has also expressed interest in the movie, though the company has yet to make a formal deal. Given how much money Warner Bros. wants from this bidding war, there will no doubt be many negotiations between multiple studios before a final deal gets made.
The upcoming Looney Tunes comedy film follows Wile E. Coyote as he decides to sue Acme Corporation for all the failed products he’d used from them in attempts to catch the Road Runner. Coyote vs. Acme‘s cast includes Will Forte as an unlucky attorney, as well as John Cena portraying Acme’s CEO. While there is currently no release date for the film without a distributor, production is complete, the movie is ready for release once the bidding war has ended.
Warner Bros. has canceled films like Batgirl before for tax reasons, but Coyote vs. Acme is the first time they’ve reversed such a decision. Due to how much money they’re seeking for the movie, it seems their decision was partly motivated by how much more they could earn selling the film to another studio. It remains to be seen how their price tag could impact negotiations with distributors, and how much longer it will be before the film gets released.
