Coyote vs. Acme has demolished a 51-year-old record.

Three years after Coyote vs. Acme was scrapped by Warner Bros. for a tax write-off and indefinitely shelved, the movie has finally come to theaters, now distributed by Ketchup Entertainment. With a “Certified Fresh” 95% critics’ score from 189 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, the film has already received extensive acclaim, with some hailing it as the best movie to ever come out of the long-running Looney Tunes franchise.

On Rotten Tomatoes, Coyote vs. Acme has now debuted with an impressive 94% audience score based on more than 500 ratings. While the score may fluctuate as more are added, as of this writing, it is the all-time best audience score for any Looney Tunes movie. This is the case when compared to the franchise’s other theatrical original movies, including Space Jam, and against the compilation and direct-to-video films.

The second highest-rated original Looney Tunes movie released in theaters is The Day the Earth Blew Up, tied with The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie, which is a film compilation of the franchise’s classic shorts. As was the case with Space Jam, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, and Space Jam: A New Legacy, Coyote vs. Acme is a hybrid of animation and live-action, although it has been better received than its predecessors in this medium.

Many of the audience reviews on Rotten Tomatoes praise Coyote vs. Acme‘s humor, balancing nostalgia with a timely story and themes, relief that the movie was finally released after being shelved, and even some referring to it as “a modern masterpiece” and an “instant classic.” Others compliment the movie for being surprisingly heartfelt, a good watch for the entire family, and among the best and funniest films released so far in 2026.

Coyote vs. Acme is centered on Wile E. Coyote, who takes legal action against the Acme Corporation after they continually sell him defective products. He is helped by attorney Kevin Avery (Will Forte), as they face ruthless Acme lawyer Buddy Crane (John Cena). The premise of underdogs fighting back against a massive corporation has come to represent a much-larger issue given the real-life events that nearly led to the movie never being released.

In ScreenRant‘s Coyote vs. Acme review, Alex Harrison gave a rating of six out of 10 stars, and argues that the tumultuous road to theatrical release led to impossibly high expectations that cannot be fully met. He emphasizes that it is still well worth watching, though, and “it’s entirely possible that this unexpected spot in the history books was its only chance at leaving a truly lasting impression.”

Coyote vs. Acme was directed by Dave Green, with a screenplay written by Samy Burch, and the story by Burch, James Gunn, and Jeremy Slater. Along with Forte and Cena, the cast features Lana Condor as Paige Avery, Tone Bell as Sal Maltese, Luis Guzmán as Judge Troppogrosso, Martha Kelly as Dottie Jones, P.J. Byrne as Bill Pellicano, Kenneth Choi as Oscar Jeon, and John Early as Henry Heslop. Eric Bauza voices Wile E. Coyote and numerous other Looney Tunes characters, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Road Runner, Pepé Le Pew, Tweety, Yosemite Sam, Porky Pig, and Elmer Fudd.