Looney Tunes & Legendary Mel Blanc Return To Movie Screens Via 3 New 3D/CG Shorts From Warner Bros. Animation

THE LOONEY TUNES — AND THE LEGENDARY MEL BLANC — RETURN TO THE SILVER SCREEN, STARTING IN 2011

ANNECY, France and BURBANK, Calif. (8 June 2011) — “Thufferin thuccotash!” Sylvester the Cat, Tweety Bird, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner will all return to theaters in three original Looney Tunes 3D theatrical cartoon shorts produced by Warner Bros. Animation and directed by Matthew O’Callaghan (Coyote Falls). Two of the new shorts — Daffy’s Rhapsody and I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat — will feature the voice of the late, great Mel Blanc. The legendary actor/comedian known as The Man of a Thousand Voices brought to life some of the most revered characters in animation history during a celebrated career spanning six decades. Blanc will appear in the shorts — which are created using state-of-the-art CG animation and rendered in stereoscopic 3D — via original songs he recorded in character in the 1950s.

The announcement was made today by Peter Roth, President, Warner Bros. Television, who oversees television animation for the Studio, and Sam Register, Executive Vice President, Creative Affairs, Warner Bros. Animation (WBA). Register unveiled news of the three original shorts — which also include an as-yet-untitled adventure featuring the Coyote and Road Runner — during a presentation at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.

“Everyone at Warner Bros. Animation grew up loving the Looney Tunes characters, and it has been both a great honor and an enormous challenge to continue the legacy of these animation icons and introduce them to a new generation of fans,” said Register. “And to have the incomparable Mel Blanc voicing these characters once more is nothing short of a dream come true for all of us.” 

Photo caption: Elmer Fudd (left) and Daffy Duck (right) star in Daffy’s Rhapsody, an all-new Looney Tunes 3D theatrical cartoon short from Warner Bros. Animation. Daffy’s Rhapsody will feature the voice of the late, great Mel Blanc, who will appear in the shorts — which are created using state-of-the-art CG animation and rendered in stereoscopic 3D — via original songs he recorded in character in the 1950s. Daffy’s Rhapsody will be released in theaters on November 18, 2011, in conjunction with Warner Bros. Pictures’ release of Happy Feet 2.

Register added, “This will probably be the last time that Looney Tunes fans will have an opportunity to see an original Mel Blanc short featuring these characters. We are honored to bring Mr. Blanc and his legacy to Looney Tunes fans once again.”

• Daffy’s Rhapsody: In the first of the new shorts, a persistent Elmer Fudd chases Daffy Duck (Blanc) on stage during a musical performance. The short features Blanc performing the song “Daffy Duck’s Rhapsody.” Daffy’s Rhapsody is scheduled to debut in theaters on November 18, 2011, in conjunction with Warner Bros. Pictures’ release of Happy Feet 2.

• I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat: A classic game of cat and bird transpires in Granny’s apartment as Tweety Bird goes to great lengths to avoid the clutches of his arch-nemesis Sylvester the Cat. The short also features the hit song of the same name, which was performed by Blanc, and sold over three million copies worldwide.

• Untitled Coyote & Road Runner: Wile E. Coyote’s epic quest to capture the Road Runner continues in this all-new short. Will the Coyote finally get his paws on his elusive prize?

• The three new shorts are all directed by Matthew O’Callaghan and executive produced by WBA’s Sam Register (The Looney Tunes Show, Teen Titans, Ben 10). The producers are Spike Brandt (The Looney Tunes Show, Duck Dodgers) and Tony Cervone (The Looney Tunes Show, Duck Dodgers).

The new theatrical shorts follow closely after the launch of The Looney Tunes Show, an all-new modern comedy series from Warner Bros. Animation which debuted in May and airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on Cartoon Network. The animated sitcom finds Bugs and Daffy living together as unlikely roommates: Bugs is as brazen, sarcastic and ahead-of-the-game as ever, while Daffy — despite his narcissistic, sociopathic and paranoid tendencies — is Bugs’ best friend and seemingly permanent houseguest.

In 2010, Warner Bros. Animation unveiled its first three CG cartoon shorts, all of which featured Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner. The first, Coyote Falls, was shortlisted for the Academy Award® for Best Short Film (Animated) and was nominated for an Annie Award for Best Animated Short Subject.