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The original director of The Naked Gun, David Zucker, has renewed his verbal assault concerning the recent reboot featuring Liam Neeson, following a short period where he seemed to adopt a more conciliatory tone following the premiere of the film's theatrical release.

Director's Disapproval of the Reboot's Comedy Approach

During a fresh discussion, Zucker stated that Seth MacFarlane, the producer behind the new Naked Gun and formerly the director and co-writer of the Ted movies, "totally missed" the spoof-comedy style that Zucker, along with his partners Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams, made famous in Airplane! and the initial trilogy of Naked Gun films.

"My brother, Jerry, and our partner, Jim Abrahams, started doing spoof comedies five decades in the past, and we developed a unique approach – and we did that so well that it looks easy, evidently. People started copying it, like the new film's producer for the recent reboot. He completely misunderstood it."

Zucker continued: "It might appear that we're just randomly trying ideas to see what sticks, but we're not. Consideration is involved."

Leslie Nielsen's Legacy

The director further stated that it was futile to produce the film without Leslie Nielsen, who portrayed the iconic character and who died 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 plans to go ahead with a Naked Gun reboot, remarking last year that he was "not enthusiastic regarding having the series handed over to other people". He continued: "They have not contacted me to make a cameo or participate in scripting. Whether or not they're going to do a good job with it, this style of parody, I mean it isn't overly complex, but it is challenging."

However, after a series of favorable critiques and strong box office returns after its release in August, Zucker struck a more conciliatory tone, commenting: "I am pleased by it because it just demonstrates there's a strong market for comedy in cinemas, and spoof in particular."

Renewed Disapproval Over Budget Concerns

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 new Naked Gun, you could see that they spent a lot of money on scenes with impressive technical effects while attempting to replicate our style."

He added: "Everybody's in it for the money now, and that seems to be the sole motivation why they decided to produce a fresh installment."