Warner Bros. has tapped Jorge R. Gutiérrez to direct an animated feature centering on the classic Looney Tunes character Speedy Gonzales.
Plot details have not been shared, and a writer has not been announced.
Gutiérrez took to social media last month to tease the project, posting a photo of himself holding a Speedy Gonzales figurine while wearing a straw hat and red bandana similar to the ones that the lightning-quick mouse typically dons.
“Guess what movie I might be developing at Warner Brothers Pictures Animation…” the filmmaker captioned.
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A popular Looney Tunes personality for decades, Speedy Gonzales debuted in the 1950s, and his eponymous 1955 Merrie Melodies short won the Oscar for best animated short film.
He is known for his impressive speed, quick wit and ability to charm the lady mice. Gabriel Iglesias voiced Speedy Gonzales in Warner Bros.‘ 2021 feature "Space Jam: A New Legacy," where the character appeared alongside such other Looney Tunes staples as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig.
Gutiérrez, who was born in Mexico City and raised in Tijuana, is known for his talents as an animator, writer, producer, director and voice actor.
He co-created the Emmy Award-winning Nickelodeon series El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera and Emmy-winning Netflix limited series Maya and the Three. His feature directorial credits include "The Book of Life," the Guillermo del Toro-produced animated movie voiced by Diego Luna, Zoe Saldaña and Channing Tatum that 20th Century Fox released in 2014.
Warner Bros. had previously developed a big-screen take on Speedy Gonzales more than a decade ago, with Eugenio Derbez’s casting as the voice star reported in 2016.
During a 2024 interview with United Press International, the actor said that his movie was unlikely to get made, as the property was presumably seen as “politically incorrect” by studio brass.
“The only ones offended are the Americans, but we love Speedy Gonzales,” Derbez said at the time, referencing criticism over the years that the character presents a Mexican stereotype. “He’s smart. He outsmarts the cats. He’s a hero. He gets cheese for his people. He’s fast.”
"Space Jam: A New Legacy," which collected $163 million at the global box office, marks the most recent Looney Tunes theatrical feature that Warner Bros. has released.
The studio’s John Cena-led Looney Tunes film, Coyote vs. Acme, had been scheduled to hit theaters in 2023, but after the movie was completed, its release was scrapped. Ketchup Entertainment ultimately acquired the Wile E. Coyote-focused project and will release it this summer.
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