Warner Bros. is Bulldozing the Looney Tunes Building—and its Own Legacy
On Warner Bros. plan to raze Building 131, how Looney Tunes should've been a flagship franchise, and the significance of "The Day the Earth Blew Up."
Tear down the foundation of the house you live in and you’re not just uprooting shelter, but erasing the history that made it a home.
For nearly a century, Looney Tunes has anchored the beating heart of Warner Bros. Across generations for the past 95 years, the opening of Looney Tunes has acted as our first impression into the depths of Warner Bros’ vast catalog. When I think of Saturday mornings or the glimpse of comfort I experienced whenever I was too sick to go to school, I can still hear Cliff Friend and Dave Franklin’s iconic score - but this time I truly do believe the merry-go-round broke down and the culprits have convinced themselves it is beyond repair.
Amid an ongoing string of corporate rollbacks, Looney Tunes has been removed from Max in an effort to prioritize adult and family programming. To make matters worse, Warner Bros. has even confirmed plans to demolish their historic Building 131, the physical home where these characters were first brought to life. Warner Discovery alleges that children’s programming is no longer a priority within the company due to low viewership, yet fails to consider the potential for a renewed interest from families with the theatrical release of their latest feature-length film, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie.
Inspired by beloved sci-fi classics like The Day the Earth Stood Still, this Looney Tunes spin-off features Porky Pig and Daffy Duck as they uncover a secret alien mind-control plot at their local bubble-gum factory. The true triumph of The Day the Earth Blew Up is how it effortlessly bridges the past and present. It manages to resurrect a time we reluctantly assumed couldn't be returned to, while lovingly modernizing Porky Pig and Daffy Duck for a contemporary audience. Each frame feels alive; it's bursting with color and the kind of meticulous detail that was dearly missed in 2-D animation. And the jokes land so well, it could make even the smallest of auditoriums feel like a sold out show.
Yet, there lies the challenge: too few people are actually aware there's a new Looney Tunes movie in theaters. Last year, an independent distribution company by the name of Ketchup Entertainment rescued The Day the Earth Blew Up by striking an all-rights deal with Warner Bros. for the previously unwanted project. As a small distributor operating within the constraints of limited capital, Ketchup ultimately lacked the resources to equip the film with the blockbuster marketing campaign a major conglomerate like Warner Bros. could've provided. With no prime-time TV spots or saturation-level social media blitz, the success of the film rests solely on word of mouth. Even so, The Day the Earth Blew Up might just be the first domino in a cascade to revive the franchise as Ketchup Entertainment has successfully negotiated a $50 million acquisition of Coyote vs. Acme, the shelved live-action Looney Tunes project that made headlines two years ago when Warner Discovery CEO David Zaslav made the decision to slash the completed film as a $30 million tax write-off.
What the Warner Discovery merger has cost cannot be measured in tax-write offs alone. The tragedy of such a transition lies in the abandonment of Warner Bros' 102-year legacy, with Looney Tunes, the crown jewel of its animation empire, left to gather dust in a vault. A studio that truly recognizes its rich history should acknowledge Looney Tunes as a flagship franchise, closely intertwined with the identity of their brand. There was once a point in time when the Warner Bros. logo was immediately followed-up with Bugs Bunny standing alongside it. What would Nintendo be without Super Mario? Disney without Mickey Mouse? Looney Tunes and the decades of work from artists at Warner Animation have become a shared language and Ketchup Entertainment is safeguarding these cultural heirlooms.
As the credits rolled and the lights flickered back on, all I could see was the delighted surprise of two parents who were in complete disbelief at how much their children enjoyed The Day the Earth Blew Up. The mother paused and slowly turned to her husband as she whispered "Wow... that was great." In that moment, I witnessed someone experience a forgotten joy and could only believe: this won't be the only screening that happens.