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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 following the premiere of the film's cinema debut.

Director's Disapproval of the New Film's Style

During a fresh discussion, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and previously the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "completely failed to grasp" the parody genre approach that Zucker, together with his partners Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, made famous in Airplane! and the initial trilogy of Naked Gun films.

"My brother, Jerry, and our partner, Jim Abrahams, began creating spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we originated our own style – and we executed it so effectively that it appears simple, evidently. People started copying it, like Seth MacFarlane for the recent reboot. He completely misunderstood it."

Zucker continued: "It might appear that we're just randomly trying ideas to see what sticks, but we're not. Consideration is involved."

The Irreplaceable Star

The director further stated that it was futile to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and who died in 2010, remarking: "They tried to replace Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and you can't replace him. Nobody else is capable of that."

Earlier Objections and Shifting Tone

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 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 is challenging."

Nonetheless, after a series of favorable critiques and strong box office returns following its launch in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, commenting: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a healthy audience for comedy in movie theatres, and parody specifically."

Return to Criticism Over Budget Concerns

However, Zucker resumed his criticism in the new interview, questioning the financial investment. "Large financial outlays and humor are incompatible, and in the recent reboot, you could see that they spent a lot of money 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 seems to be the sole motivation why they wanted to do a new Naked Gun."