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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, after briefly appearing to soften his stance in the aftermath of the film's theatrical release.

Zucker's Critique of the New Film's Style

During a fresh discussion, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the parody genre approach that Zucker, along with his partners Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, popularized in Airplane! and the three original 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. Others began imitating it, like the new film's producer for the new Naked Gun. He completely misunderstood it."

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

The Irreplaceable Star

The director further stated that it was pointless to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and passed away in 2010, remarking: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and he cannot be replaced. No one else can do 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 enthusiastic regarding having the franchise given to different individuals". Adding: "They have not contacted me to appear briefly or be involved in the writing. Whether or not they're going to do a good job with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it's not rocket science, but it's not easy."

However, after a series of favorable critiques and strong box office returns after its release in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, commenting: "I am pleased by it because it just demonstrates there's a healthy audience for comedy in movie theatres, and spoof in particular."

Renewed Disapproval Over Financial Aspects

However, 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 with impressive technical effects while trying to copy our style."

He added: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that seems to be the only reason why they decided to produce a fresh installment."