The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie is a 2024 American animated science fiction comedy film produced by Warner Bros. Animation. Directed by Pete Browngardt in his directorial debut, it is the first fully-animated feature film with entirely original material of the Looney Tunes franchise to receive a worldwide theatrical release. The film is an adaptation of the Looney Tunes Cartoons series developed by Browngardt and features the voices of Eric Bauza, Candi Milo, and Peter MacNicol. Its story centers on Daffy Duck and Porky Pig as they try to save Earth from an alien scheme. The Day the Earth Blew Up premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 11, 2024, and is scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States by Ketchup Entertainment on March 14, 2025.

Premise

Due to a series of antics at the bubblegum factory, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig discover a secret alien plot to take over the Earth via mind-control. The duo must work together to stop the aliens with a little help from Petunia Pig, while trying to avoid driving each other insane.

Voice cast

Eric Bauza as Daffy Duck and Porky Pig Candi Milo as Petunia Pig Peter MacNicol as The Invader Fred Tatasciore as Farmer Jim Laraine Newman as Mrs. Grecht Wayne Knight as Mayor

Production

= Development

= In 2019, while working on the series Looney Tunes Cartoons for streaming service Max, series developer Peter Browngardt was asked if he had any ideas for a new Looney Tunes feature film. After considering several genre settings, Browngardt eventually settled on the premise of a "sci-fi B-Movie from the '50s," in the vein of films such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) and The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). He also knew he wanted the film to center on Daffy Duck and Porky Pig, acknowledging the characters' previous appearances together in the science fiction-themed Merrie Melodies short films Duck Dodgers and Rocket Squad. In September 2021, it was reported that a film based on the Looney Tunes Cartoons series was in development at Warner Bros. Animation, focusing on Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. Kevin Costello, who previously wrote Warner Animation Group's Tom & Jerry released earlier that year, was announced as the writer, with Browngardt serving as an executive producer and director. In addition to Costello and Browngardt, nine storyboard artists worked on the screenplay and ultimately received writing credit. Eric Bauza reprises his voice role as Daffy and took over as the voice of Porky, replacing Bob Bergen. Candi Milo replaced Lara Jill Miller as Petunia Pig. Additional starring cast members include Peter MacNicol, Fred Tatasciore, Laraine Newman, and Wayne Knight.

= Animation

= Warner Bros. Animation, Tonic DNA, Powerhouse Animation and Snipple Animation worked on the film, with Titmouse, Inc. providing animation for one sequence. The characters' designs were modelled after the style of Looney Tunes animator Bob Clampett, while the design for The Invader, the film's antagonist, was inspired by Invasion of the Saucer Men (1957).

= Music

= Joshua Moshier, who previously worked on Looney Tunes Cartoons, composed the film's score.

Release

The Day the Earth Blew Up was originally set to be released on HBO Max and the "ACME Night" block on Cartoon Network. However in August 2022, it was reported that due to a restructuring at Warner Bros. Discovery, the film would no longer be released on HBO Max nor Cartoon Network and that instead would be shopped around to other streaming services. In June 2023, the film was retitled Looney Tunes: Bubble Brains. In October 2023, it was announced that the film would instead be released in theaters in 2024, with the title reverting to the original; GFM Animation launched sales and presented first-look footage at the American Film Market, which ran from October 31 to November 5, 2023. The film's world premiere took place at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival celebration on June 11, 2024. It was first released theatrically in Germany and Switzerland on August 1, 2024 by Warner Bros. Pictures and Praesens-Film. That same month, it was announced that Ketchup Entertainment acquired North American theatrical distribution rights. The film was screened at the Animation Is Film Festival in Los Angeles on October 19, 2024. Two days prior to the Los Angeles screening, Ketchup scheduled the film to be released theatrically in the United States on February 28, 2025. On February 5, 2025, it was revealed that the film was pushed back to March 14, 2025. In order for it to be eligible for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for the 2024 awards, the film was screened early in Los Angeles for 7 days starting on December 13 of that year.

= Marketing

= The film was promoted during the Warner Bros. Discovery panel at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, where the film's original title was unveiled. An early animation clip for the film was released on September 22, 2022. It was shown during the Warner Bros. Animation panel at the Ottawa International Animation Festival.

Reception

= Box office

= Prior to the wide theatrical release in the United States, The Day the Earth Blew Up has grossed over $1.17 million worldwide as of February 18, 2025.

= Critical response

= Upon its respective premieres in Annecy and Los Angeles, The Day the Earth Blew Up received overwhelmingly positive reactions from attendees. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 92% of 13 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.4/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 82 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Peter Debruge of Variety praised the film for its comedy and emotional core, and felt that the entire project was "crafted with love and a genuine respect for the franchise". Rafael Motomayor of IGN awarded the film a 9 out of 10 star rating. He praised its comedy, emotional core, animation, and Bauza's voice performances, and referred to it as "one of the funniest movies of the year".

References

External links

Official website The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie at IMDb The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie at Rotten Tomatoes