‘Coyote vs. Acme’ Just Delivered One of the Wildest Box Office Redemption Stories of the Year

Few movies have had a stranger road to theaters than ‘Coyote vs. Acme.’ What started as a finished, shelved film became a rallying cry for animation fans, an industry embarrassment for Warner Bros. Discovery, and eventually, an unlikely comeback story that nobody saw coming three years ago.

The film’s opening weekend has only added another chapter to that saga. Tracking for ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ sat in the single digits just weeks before release, before climbing steadily as buzz, reviews, and reshuffled projections pushed expectations higher and higher.

By the time the numbers came in, the results were hard to ignore. ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ pulled in a global opening weekend north of $30 million, backed by a 95% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, a 94% audience score, and a rare ‘A’ CinemaScore grade from opening-night crowds.

That kind of reception is especially remarkable given the film’s backstory. Warner Bros. Discovery shelved the completed movie in November 2023, taking a reported $30 million tax write-off despite the film already being finished, a decision that sparked major backlash from animation fans and industry figures alike. Ketchup Entertainment eventually stepped in and acquired worldwide rights for around $50 million in March 2025, finally setting the film on a path to release.

Director Dave Green marked the film’s release with an emotional message, writing on Instagram that the movie’s arrival in theaters meant “one thing,” declaring simply, “WE WON,” according to Deadline. He went on to describe the moment as a shared victory belonging to the cast, crew, and the fans who had campaigned for years to see the film released.

Star Will Forte echoed that sentiment in his own social media message, calling the story “about hope and determination” and crediting fans directly for the film’s survival, telling supporters they had “lifted us up on your shoulders and just fought and fought for this movie.”

The film itself follows Wile E. Coyote, voiced by Eric Bauza, as he hires a billboard attorney played by Will Forte to sue the Acme Corporation for its long history of faulty, dangerous products. John Cena joins the cast as Acme’s opposing counsel, with Lana Condor also starring in the live-action and animation hybrid comedy.

Financially, ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ still has ground to cover before it’s considered a true success story. Between the $50 million acquisition cost and additional marketing spend, the film will likely need strong legs domestically and solid international numbers to turn a real profit for Ketchup. Still, given where this project started, even getting to theaters at all counts as a win in itself.

For a film that spent years as a symbol of corporate cost-cutting gone wrong, this opening weekend feels like a genuine vindication. Whether or not ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ ultimately turns a profit, its journey from tax write-off to certified crowd-pleaser has already become one of the more heartening stories in recent Hollywood memory.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!