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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 in the aftermath of the film's cinema debut.

Zucker's Critique of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

During a fresh discussion, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the creative force behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the director and co-writer of the Ted movies, "completely failed to grasp" the parody genre approach 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 five decades in the past, and we developed a unique approach – and we executed it so effectively that it appears simple, clearly. People started copying it, like the new film's producer for the new Naked Gun. He completely misunderstood it."

Zucker continued: "It can look like we're just randomly trying ideas to see what sticks, but we're not. There's thought behind it."

Leslie Nielsen's Legacy

Zucker added that it was futile to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and passed away in 2010, saying: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, 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, saying in 2024 that he was "not excited about having the franchise given to different individuals". Adding: "I have not been approached to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. Whether or not they're going to succeed with it, this style of parody, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

Nonetheless, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance after its release in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, saying: "I am pleased by it because it just demonstrates there's a healthy audience for comedy in cinemas, and parody specifically."

Renewed Disapproval Over Budget Concerns

However, Zucker resumed his criticism in the recent discussion, 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 seems to be the sole motivation why they decided to produce a new Naked Gun."