Coyote Vs Acme Ruled Eligible For Best Animated Feature

There can be few more heartwarming stories in Hollywood this year than the success of Coyote Vs Acme. After the company that made it- Warner Bros. Discovery, as it was then- tried to kill it, writing it off as a tax-saving exercise, fans and filmmakers kicked up a stink. Eventually, WBD relented and allowed another distributor to buy it. In came Ketchup Entertainment, and the rest is history. Released in August 2026, it arrived to largely glowing reviews and positive buzz. grossing over $120 million worldwide ($60 million in the US alone).

Now, there's even more good news for Dave Green's film. In a surprising move, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences has judged that the film is eligible for submission for Best Animated Feature at the 2027 Oscars. Submission requirements for the category state that a film has to contain animation for at least 75% of the run time. It doesn't have to be fully animated, and a hybrid live-action/animation film can qualify if it meets the threshold. Apparently, Coyote Vs Acme does.

This does not mean that it will definitely get nominated- only that it qualifies to be. In the 25-year history of the Best Animated Feature Award, the Academy has only once nominated a hybrid film: Marcel The Shell With Shoes On. That film combined stop-motion with live footage. If it were nominated, it would be the first CGI-live-action hybrid to do so.

What are the chances of it getting nominated? The competition is looking pretty fierce. Wildwood is considered the front-runner and the likely eventual winner. Forgotten Island is also quite acclaimed. It would be surprising for Toy Story 5 not to at least get a nomination, even if its reception was somewhat mixed. Disney's Hexed is also likely to get in the mix, particularly if it turns out to be good. Outsiders include Hoppers, Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender and Shaun The Sheep: The Beast Of Mossy Bottom,  Also vying for a spot are indie and international titles Tangles, Iron Boy, Julian, We Are Aliens, The Violinist and In Waves. There are only five spots, so it's sure to be a tight race. But based on the love heaped on its release by both animation fans and movie buffs, it would not be a big surprise to see Coyote Vs Acme nominated (to, in all likelihood, lose to Wildwood).

Coyote Vs Acme features down-at-heel lawyer Kevin Avery (Will Forte) who accepts a job from cartoon character Wile E. Coyote. The hapless canine wants to sue the Acme Corporation, contesting that their faulty products have caused him only pain and setbacks in his relentless pursuit of Road Runner. The resulting case leads to appearances from quite a few beloved Looney Tunes characters.

Directed by Dave Green, the film is written by Samy Burch, Jeremy Slater and James Gunn. It also stars Lana Condor, John Cena, Luis Guzman and in what would turn out to be one of his final roles, the voice of Eric Bauza.

Coyote Vs Acme is available to rent or buy digitally in the US via Amazon, Apple or other digital storefronts and will be released on BluRay on December 1.

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