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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 in the aftermath of the film's theatrical release.

Director's Disapproval of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

In a recent interview, Zucker expressed that Seth MacFarlane, the creative force behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the filmmaker and script collaborator of the Ted movies, "completely failed to grasp" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, together with his partners Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, popularized in Airplane! and the initial trilogy of Naked Gun films.

"My brother, Jerry, and our partner, Jim Abrahams, started doing spoof comedies 50 years ago, and we originated our own style – and we executed it so effectively that it looks easy, clearly. People started copying it, like the new film's producer for the recent reboot. He totally missed it."

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

Leslie Nielsen's Legacy

Zucker added that it was pointless to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who played Frank Drebin and passed away in 2010, remarking: "They attempted to substitute Leslie Nielsen in the recent revival, and you can't replace him. No one else can do that."

Earlier Objections and Shifting Tone

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 different individuals". He continued: "I have not been approached to make a cameo or be involved in the writing. Whether or not they're going to succeed with it, this kind of spoof, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

Nonetheless, 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 demonstrates there's a healthy audience for comedy in cinemas, and spoof in particular."

Return to Criticism Over Financial Aspects

However, Zucker returned to the attack in the recent discussion, criticising the amount of money involved. "Big budgets and comedy are opposites, and in the recent reboot, you could see that they invested heavily on scenes full of technical pizzazz while attempting to replicate our style."

He added: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that feels like the sole motivation why they wanted to do a fresh installment."