'Coyote Vs. Acme's Most Adult Joke Has A Surprisingly Long History
Coyote vs. Acme (2026) is a goofy blast, with plenty of classic Looney Tunes (1929) comedy throughout. The real trick to the movie is that, like Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) and Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), there’s a layer of social satire hidden behind the pratfalls and slapstick. The film’s legal thriller parody eventually gives way to a harsh critique of modern capitalism in society, especially the way it can be used for the betterment of the few at the expense of the many.
One of the best examples of this comes after Bugs Bunny secretly informs Kevin, Paige, and Wile E. Coyote that toons have been experimented on by Acme for years. This leads to a string of cameos and gags that set up a joke with a long history, and one of the franchise’s larger controversies: Pepé Le Pew.
'Coyote Vs. Acme's Most Adult Gag Is About Pepé Le Pew
Coyote vs. Acme has plenty of jokes and allusions that adults will get a lot more easily than kids, but the most mature gag of them all has to do with Pepé Le Pew. The joke comes as part of the reveal that Acme has been using toons as unwitting test subjects for products being marketed and produced for human consumption and use. Among the many items shown in this montage is an anti-predator spray.
Instead of being used on a massive animal or a ferocious creature, the spray is used to hit Pepé Le Pew. It’s a fast moment that might slip by younger audiences, but older audiences will probably let out a surprised gasp of laughter. It’s an unexpected gag but an effective one, especially in light of how perceptions about the character have shifted in the 80 years since he first debuted.
Pepé Le Pew's Controversial History, Explained
The cartoon skunk, who debuted in the 1945 short “Odor-able Kitty,” has always been defined as a wannabe lothario whose charms are undone by his odor and his dogged pursuit of other characters. Pepé Le Pew shorts are often about the skunk’s efforts to win over the object of his affections, often a cat whom he has mistaken for a fellow skunk, despite their attempts to get away from him. While Pepé Le Pew was never necessarily one of the most popular Looney Tunes characters, he was a frequent fixture of the franchise and appeared in plenty of shorts, as well as in later Warner Bros. Animation projects like Tiny Toon Adventures (1990) and Space Jam (1996). However, the character garnered plenty of controversy over the years.
Some audiences feel that Pepé Le Pew is an offensive stereotype of French men and culture, depicting them as aggressive “charmers” who will pursue women long after they’ve expressed no romantic interest in them. The character became even more prominently controversial in conversations that followed the #MeToo movement, wherein the broader culture was forced to reckon with the nature of sexual harassment and depictions of it in mass media.
While comedians like Dave Chappelle had been pointing out the character’s aggressive nature for years in stand-up specials like Killin’ Them Softly (2000), the broader discussion about the character and the way his actions could be seen as normalization of sexual harassment led to Pepé Le Pew being removed from Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021).
Why The "Anti-Predator" Spray Joke Works
All of that makes the Pepé Le Pew joke in Coyote vs. Acme all the more effective. The film as a whole feels like an opportunity for the people working on Looney Tunes to point out many societal ills in a silly manner, ranging from the way corporations are able to manipulate society to maintain their power to the way mental health, wealth disparity, and corporate sabotage factor into the modern world. There are other gags poking fun at government functions and legal loopholes, the type of jokes that young audiences might not catch but that older viewers will be chuckling to themselves about.
One of the best is the anti-predator spray joke, largely because it works on multiple levels. It serves as Pepé Le Pew’s big cameo in the film, with a joke that references the controversial history of the character. It fits neatly into the narrative of the movie and works as another example of a toon being experimented on, making sure the gag doesn’t feel like a throwaway line. Overall, it’s a clever joke and exactly the kind of comedy that Coyote vs. Acme excels at.
