Original Naked Gun Director Launches Fresh Criticism on Liam Neeson-Led Naked Gun Reboot

The original director 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 theatrical release.

Zucker's Critique of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

In a recent interview, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and previously the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, together with his collaborators Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, made famous in Airplane! and the three original Naked Gun films.

"My brother, Jerry, and our partner, Jim Abrahams, started doing spoof comedies five decades in the past, and we originated our own style – and we executed it so effectively that it looks easy, clearly. People started copying it, like the new film's producer for the recent reboot. He totally missed it."

He added: "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

The director further stated that it was futile to make the movie without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and who died in 2010, saying: "They tried to replace Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and he cannot be replaced. Nobody else is capable of that."

Earlier Objections and Changing Stance

The filmmaker had earlier expressed opposition to the decision to proceed with a Naked Gun reboot, saying in 2024 that he was "not enthusiastic regarding having the franchise given to other people". Adding: "They have not contacted me to appear briefly or participate in scripting. Whether or not they're going to do a good job with it, this style of parody, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

However, after a string of positive reviews and strong box office returns after its release in August, Zucker adopted a more agreeable stance, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just demonstrates there's a healthy audience for comedy in cinemas, and parody specifically."

Renewed Disapproval Over Financial Aspects

Yet, Zucker returned to the attack in the new interview, 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 full of technical pizzazz while trying to copy 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 fresh installment."