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The filmmaker behind the classic 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 soften his stance in the aftermath of the film's cinema debut.

Zucker's Critique of the New Film's Style

During a fresh discussion, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the director and co-writer of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, along with his partners 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 developed a unique approach – and we executed it so effectively that it looks easy, evidently. People started copying it, like Seth MacFarlane for the recent reboot. He totally missed it."

Zucker continued: "It might appear that we're just throwing stuff up against the wall to see what sticks, but we're not. Consideration is involved."

The Irreplaceable Star

Zucker added that it was pointless to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and passed away 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."

Earlier Objections 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 enthusiastic regarding having the series handed over to different individuals". Adding: "I have not been approached to make a cameo or participate in scripting. Regardless of if they're going to succeed with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it's not rocket science, but it's not easy."

However, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance after its release 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."

Return to Criticism Over Budget Concerns

Yet, Zucker resumed his criticism in the new interview, criticising the amount of money involved. "Big budgets and comedy are opposites, and in the new Naked Gun, you could see that they spent a lot of money on scenes full of technical pizzazz while attempting to replicate our style."

Zucker further noted: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that feels like the sole motivation why they wanted to do a new Naked Gun."