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The filmmaker behind the classic of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has reignited his criticism concerning the recent reboot featuring Liam Neeson, after briefly appearing to adopt a more conciliatory tone in the aftermath of the film's cinema debut.

Director's Disapproval of the New Film's Style

In a recent interview, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the creative force behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the director and co-writer of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the parody genre approach that Zucker, along 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 five decades in the past, and we developed a unique approach – and we did that so well that it looks easy, evidently. Others began imitating it, like the new film's producer for the recent reboot. 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

Zucker added that it was pointless to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and who died in 2010, saying: "They tried to replace Leslie Nielsen in the new Naked Gun, and you can't replace him. Nobody else is capable of 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 other people". He continued: "I have not been approached to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. Whether or not they're going to do a good job with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

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 demonstrates there's a healthy audience for comedy in movie theatres, and parody specifically."

Renewed Disapproval Over Financial Aspects

Yet, Zucker returned to the attack in the recent discussion, 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: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that feels like the sole motivation why they wanted to do a fresh installment."