Summary
- Coyote vs.
- Acme opened at No.
- 2 at the US and Canadian box office
- Its final three-day total reached $15.91 million from 3,575 cinemas
- Warner Bros.
- had cancelled the completed film’s release in 2023
- Ketchup Entertainment acquired the rights and scored the biggest opening in its history
- An A CinemaScore and 95% critic score improve its chances of staying power
“Coyote vs. Acme”, a completed film Warner Bros. once decided never to release, has returned from the shelf and opened at No. 2 at the North American box office.
Dave Green’s live-action/animation hybrid earned $15.91 million from 3,575 cinemas over the 28–30 August 2026 weekend, according to final figures from The Numbers. “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” remained ahead with $22.2 million in its fifth weekend.
Second place does not automatically turn the film into a financial success, but it carries unusual weight: three years earlier, Warner Bros. had chosen to cancel every form of release for an already completed production that cost about $70 million. Independent distributor Ketchup Entertainment later acquired worldwide distribution rights and finally brought it to cinemas.
From cancellation to Ketchup’s biggest opening
“Coyote vs. Acme” was completed in 2022 and originally designed for HBO Max. In November 2023, Warner Bros. Discovery announced that it would not release the film and intended to pursue a tax write-off. The same period had already left the completed “Batgirl” and “Scoob! Holiday Haunt” unreleased.
The reaction from filmmakers, actors and audiences led the studio to consider bids, although no deal was completed at the time. Ketchup Entertainment acquired distribution rights in March 2025 for a reported sum of roughly $50 million and set a cinema release for 28 August 2026.
The final $15.91 million opening is nearly five times Ketchup’s previous record: the $3.1 million debut of “The Day the Earth Blew Up”, another Warner-produced Looney Tunes film. For an independent distributor, reaching 3,575 cinemas and second place represents a major increase in scale.
What the audience response shows
Moviegoers awarded the film an “A” CinemaScore, while its positive critic score on Rotten Tomatoes stood at 95% during opening weekend. Those indicators do not guarantee strong staying power, but they improve the chances of limiting the usual second-week decline.
Analyst David A. Gross called the box-office result fair and the reception excellent, telling the Associated Press that the release could support ancillary business and home viewing. That is crucial for a family film built around recognisable characters, whose financial performance extends well beyond the first weekend.
A story that moved from the industry to the screen
The screenplay draws on Ian Frazier’s satirical New Yorker piece and turns decades of defective ACME products into a court case. Wile E. Coyote joins accident lawyer Kevin Avery, played by Will Forte, and takes on the company that has launched, exploded and dropped him from cliffs for generations.
John Cena, Lana Condor and Tone Bell also star, while Eric Bauza voices the Coyote. The film combines live performers with animation, placing Looney Tunes physics inside a satire about corporate responsibility and profit.
What No. 2 really means
The result needs to be read on two levels. Against a $70 million production cost, a $15.91 million opening is not enough to establish profitability, especially without complete marketing, international-sales and ancillary-revenue figures. Against Ketchup’s scale, however, it is a company record and clear evidence of commercial interest.
Most importantly, a film that had been removed from the market was allowed to face an audience. Second place does not settle Hollywood’s tax-write-off debate, but it provides one rare piece of real evidence: in this case, there was an audience willing to buy tickets.
What we think
The “Coyote vs. Acme” story is more than a symbolic “victory for the fans”. The opening represents a measurable risk taken by a smaller distributor and, so far, rewarded with the biggest weekend in its history. A final financial assessment will take time, but the decision to give the film a genuine theatrical life has already been vindicated by audience interest.
Frequently asked questions
How much did Coyote vs. Acme earn on opening weekend?
Final figures show $15.91 million from 3,575 cinemas in the United States and Canada.
Where did it rank?
It opened in second place, behind “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and ahead of “The Odyssey”.
Why was it cancelled?
Warner Bros. Discovery decided in 2023 not to release the completed film and to pursue a tax write-off.
Who finally released it?
Ketchup Entertainment acquired worldwide distribution rights and released the film on 28 August 2026.
Who stars in the film?
The cast includes Will Forte, John Cena, Lana Condor and Tone Bell, with Eric Bauza voicing Wile E. Coyote.
