🔗 Share this article

The original director of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has renewed his verbal assault concerning the newly released revival featuring Liam Neeson, following a short period where he seemed to soften his stance following the premiere of the film's theatrical release.

Director's Disapproval of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

During a fresh discussion, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the creative force behind the new Naked Gun and previously the director and co-writer 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.

"My brother, Jerry, and our partner, Jim Abrahams, began creating spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we developed a unique approach – and we did that so well that it appears simple, evidently. People started copying it, like the new film's producer for the new Naked Gun. He completely misunderstood 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

Zucker added that it was futile to make the movie 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."

Earlier Objections and Shifting Tone

Zucker had previously objected to plans to go ahead with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not excited about having the series handed over to other people". Adding: "I have not been approached to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. Regardless of if they're going to do a good job with it, this style of parody, I mean it's not rocket science, but it's not easy."

Nonetheless, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance following its launch in August, Zucker adopted a more agreeable stance, saying: "I am pleased by it because it just demonstrates there's a strong market for comedy in cinemas, and spoof in particular."

Return to Criticism Over Budget Concerns

Yet, Zucker resumed his criticism in the new interview, questioning the financial investment. "Big budgets and comedy are opposites, and in the recent reboot, you could see that they invested heavily 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 new Naked Gun."