‘Coyote vs. Acme’ gives hope to shelved projects after Disney cancels ‘Gargoyles’ reboot
Hollywood saw two very different endings for shelved projects this week. Just days after a canceled film found new life in theaters, another project’s fate was sealed behind the scenes by its studio. Disney laid to rest plans for the ‘Gargoyles’ reboot that had been in development for years. News about the cancellation came to light when series creator Greg Weisman spoke with ComicsOnline at Fan Expo Chicago this month. When asked about the series that Disney first announced in October 2023, Weisman said, “Atomic Monster had the license to develop a live-action Gargoyles for Disney+, and that's dead.” He added that he had no information on a possible animated revival.
The reboot had pedigree, with ‘Annabelle’ writer Gary Dauberman set to write, executive produce, and serve as showrunner under James Wan’s Atomic Monster banner. Dauberman had promised fans that the series would stay true to the darker and serialized original animated series. However, the project was canceled along with several other Disney+ shows, including ‘Wonder Man’ Season 2 and the ‘Power Rangers’ series.
‘Coyote vs. Acme,’ on the other hand, had a much happier ending, despite also being canceled for a brief time. The finished multi-million dollar film was shelved by Warner Bros. Discovery in late 2023, after a tax-deductible write-off. This left fans frustrated and even prompted a “funeral screening” by some of the cast and crew. However, the film’s independent distributor, Ketchup Entertainment, acquired the film’s domestic rights for a healthy $50 million last year, and the movie finally hit 3,575 theaters over the weekend. ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ pulled in $15.4 million, securing second place at the box office, just behind ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day.’
The financial calculations are still complex. Between the acquisition cost, initial production budget, and marketing campaign, ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ faces an uphill battle to turn a profit. However, for a movie that was written off entirely, being in theaters already counts as a win. Together, these two stories reflect the industry’s current state. Streaming services continue to scale back their productions, leaving completed or long-developed projects vulnerable to cancellation despite having significant goodwill from fans. Yet, ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ proves that sometimes, even projects that are shelved, canceled, or forgotten can find new life through a bidding war, a long development cycle, and an independent distributor.
