The original director of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has reignited his criticism 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.
Zucker's Critique of the New Film's Style
During a fresh discussion, 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 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, started doing spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we originated our own style – and we did that so well that it appears simple, clearly. People started copying it, like Seth MacFarlane for the recent reboot. 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. 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 who died in 2010, remarking: "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
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 franchise given to other people". He continued: "They have not contacted me to make a cameo 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."
Nonetheless, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance following its launch in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a healthy audience for comedy in movie theatres, and parody specifically."
Renewed Disapproval Over Financial Aspects
However, Zucker resumed his criticism in the recent discussion, criticising the amount of money involved. "Large financial outlays and humor are incompatible, and in the new Naked Gun, you could see that they invested heavily on scenes with impressive technical effects 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."
