It’s seven years since we saw characters from the Looney Tunes stable on the big screen, in Joe Dante’s long-forgotten “Looney Tunes: Back In Action,” and the failure of that film saw the likes of Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig, Sylvester, Tweety, and Road Runner put out to pasture, leaving an entire generation of children more-or-less unfamiliar with the classic characters.
But considering the merchandising potential alone, it was unlikely that Warner Bros would leave them alone for too long, and, with the first of three 3D shorts starring the characters premiering alongside “Cats and Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore,” Warner Bros have announced that they’re moving ahead with a live-action/CG film focusing on perhaps the most recognizable of the Looney Tunes gang, “Bugs Bunny.”
Pictures that mix classic talking animal characters with live action are big business after the monster hits in the “Alvin and the Chipmunk” series, even after “Marmaduke” flopped, so it’s easy to imagine that this film will follow the formula that’s served the subgenre so well.
To wit, take one classic cartoon character. Give him an entirely inappropriate celebrity voice (Jim Carrey? Zack Galifanakis?) Combine with one semi-bland male lead, preferably from a hit TV show (we’re going to say… Johnny Galecki from “The Big Bang Theory”). Give him an implausibly hot romantic interest, and a villain played by a stand-up comedian with overdue alimony payments. Sprinkle in some slapstick comedy, some extreme sports and some hip-hop dancing for the trailer, and hey presto! $200 million worldwide!
Having said that, there is reason to hold out a little more hope on this one, as David Berenbaum has been hired by Warners to pen the script, and he was behind two of the freshest, most enjoyable kids movies of recent years, “Elf” and “The Spiderwick Chronicles.” But he was also behind scripts for Eddie Murphy’s “The Haunted Mansion” and Tim Allen superhero flop “Zoom,” so, you know, peaks and valleys.
It’s early days so no release date, producers or directors are on board but we figure once a script is in place those pieces will come together. [Deadline]
