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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 adopt a more conciliatory tone following the premiere of the film's theatrical release.

Director's Disapproval of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

In a recent interview, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the creative force behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the director and co-writer of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the parody genre approach that Zucker, together with his collaborators Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, popularized in Airplane! and the three original Naked Gun films.

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

Leslie Nielsen's Legacy

Zucker added that it was pointless to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and who died in 2010, saying: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the new Naked Gun, and he cannot be replaced. No one else can do 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 series handed over to other people". He continued: "I have not been approached to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. Regardless of if they're going to succeed with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

However, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance after its release in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a strong market for comedy in cinemas, and parody specifically."

Renewed Disapproval Over Budget Concerns

However, Zucker returned to the attack in the recent discussion, questioning the financial investment. "Big budgets and comedy are opposites, and in the recent reboot, you could see that they invested heavily on scenes full of technical pizzazz while attempting to replicate our style."

Zucker further noted: "Financial motives drive everyone currently, and that feels like the sole motivation why they decided to produce a fresh installment."