John Cena is going from the bullets and F-bomb-strewn world of Peacemaker to the more family-friendly yet no less hazardous world of Looney Tunes.
The actor has closed a deal to star in Coyote vs Acme, a live-action, CG animation hybrid feature being made by Warner Bros. and based on the classic Looney Tunes character.
Dave Green, who previously helmed Earth to Echo and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, is directing. Chris DeFaria and James Gunn are producing the film. Screenwriter Samy Burch penned the latest draft, based on Looney Tunes characters and The New Yorker humor article “Coyote v. Acme” by Ian Frazier and published in 1990.
Coyote, whose full name is Wile E. Coyote, is, of course, the silent and cunningly inventive and scrappy mammal who is endlessly foiled in his attempts to capture and kill his nemesis and meal, the Road Runner. He is aided in his attempts by devices mail-ordered from Acme Corporation, which never quite work the way they are supposed to.
The feature, centered on Coyote taking Acme to court over defective products, tell the story of a down-on-his-luck human attorney who takes the case, and in the process, faces the boss of his former law firm.
Cena will play the former boss and an antagonist in the feature, which seems like part courtroom, part family comedy.
Production is due to begin in late March in New Mexico.
A champion WWE wrestler, Cena has made huge strides into acting, tackling profane comedies (Blockers, Vacation Friends) and family comedies (Playing with Fire) in equal measure, as well as adventure and action movies. Last year he starred in both F9: The Fast Saga and The Suicide Squad, the latter a Warner’s DC movie which spun off into the Peacemaker series for HBO Max.
The show has proven to be a buzzworthy draw for the streamer and earlier Wednesday HBO Max announced it was renewed for a second season.
Cena is repped by ICM Partners.
Source: HollyWood
