The filmmaker behind the classic of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has reignited his criticism 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 cinema debut.
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, "completely failed to grasp" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, together with his collaborators Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, popularized in Airplane! and the initial trilogy of 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 looks easy, evidently. Others began imitating it, like Seth MacFarlane for the recent reboot. He completely misunderstood it."
He added: "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."
Zucker added that it was futile to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and who died in 2010, remarking: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and he cannot be replaced. Nobody else is capable of that."
The filmmaker had earlier expressed opposition to the decision to proceed with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not enthusiastic regarding having the series handed over to different individuals". He continued: "They have not contacted me to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. 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 series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance following its launch in August, Zucker adopted a more agreeable stance, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a strong market for comedy in cinemas, and parody specifically."
However, Zucker returned to the attack in the new interview, 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 full of technical pizzazz while attempting to replicate our style."
He added: "Financial motives drive everyone currently, and that seems to be the sole motivation why they wanted to do a fresh installment."
