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The original director of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has reignited his criticism concerning the recent reboot featuring Liam Neeson, following a short period where he seemed to adopt a more conciliatory tone in the aftermath of the film's cinema debut.

Zucker's Critique of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

In a recent interview, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the creative force 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 collaborators Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, popularized in Airplane! and the initial trilogy of Naked Gun films.

"Jerry, my sibling, and Jim Abrahams, our associate, began creating spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we originated our own style – and we executed it so effectively that it looks easy, evidently. Others began imitating it, like Seth MacFarlane for the new Naked Gun. He totally missed it."

Zucker continued: "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 futile to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and passed away in 2010, saying: "They tried to replace Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and he cannot be replaced. Nobody else is capable of that."

Earlier Objections and Changing Stance

Zucker had previously objected to plans to go ahead with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not excited about having the series handed over to other people". Adding: "I have not been approached to make a cameo 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 isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

However, after a string of positive reviews and impressive financial performance after its release in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, commenting: "I'm excited about it because it just shows that there's a strong market for comedy in movie theatres, and spoof in particular."

Renewed Disapproval Over Financial Aspects

Yet, Zucker returned to the attack in the recent discussion, criticising the amount of money involved. "Large financial outlays and humor are incompatible, and in the new Naked Gun, you could see that they spent a lot of money on scenes with impressive technical effects while trying to copy our style."

He added: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that feels like the only reason why they decided to produce a new Naked Gun."