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The original director of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has reignited his criticism concerning the newly released revival featuring Liam Neeson, after briefly appearing to adopt a more conciliatory tone following the premiere of the film's cinema debut.

Zucker's Critique of the New Film's Style

During a fresh discussion, Zucker expressed 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 spoof-comedy style that Zucker, together with his collaborators Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, made famous 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 appears simple, evidently. Others began imitating it, like Seth MacFarlane for the new Naked Gun. He totally missed it."

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

The Irreplaceable Star

Zucker added that it was futile to make the movie without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and passed away in 2010, remarking: "They tried to replace Leslie Nielsen in the new Naked Gun, and he cannot be replaced. No one else can do that."

Previous Reservations and Shifting Tone

The filmmaker had earlier expressed opposition to the decision to proceed with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not excited about having the franchise given to other people". Adding: "I have not been approached to appear briefly or participate in scripting. Regardless of if they're going to do a good job with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it's not rocket science, but it is challenging."

Nonetheless, after a series of favorable critiques and impressive financial performance after its release in August, Zucker adopted a more agreeable stance, saying: "I'm excited about it because it just demonstrates there's a strong market for comedy in movie theatres, and parody specifically."

Return to Criticism Over Budget Concerns

Yet, Zucker resumed his criticism in the recent discussion, criticising the amount of money involved. "Big budgets and comedy are opposites, and in the new Naked Gun, you could see that they invested heavily on scenes with impressive technical effects while attempting to replicate our style."

He added: "Financial motives drive everyone currently, and that seems to be the sole motivation why they decided to produce a fresh installment."