Elmer Fudd from the Looney Tunes was never known for his hunting skills, yet he has just lost one of the very few advantages that he had over his targets – his rifle.
Warner Bros., the copyright owners of the Looney Tunes series, has announced that it will strip Elmer Fudd of his iconic rifle in the new series of the cartoon that is set to stream on HBO Max.
According to the Telegraph, Warners made this decision as a response to gun violence within the US. For those unfamiliar, one of the core and lasting plots of the long-running cartoon show is Fudd’s never-ending hunt for the witty Bugs Bunny.
As it can be inferred from his famous catchphrase asking Bugs Bunny himself to be “very, very quiet” as he is hunting for a “rabbit” (with the signature w sound for all the r), the incompetent hunter proved no match for the world’s wittiest and most famous rabbit.
Yet ever since its debut, Fudd had always had his reliable shotgun by his side – until this new season set to stream on HBO Max. In an interview with the New York Times, series executive Peter Browngardt confirmed that they will not show any guns on the news series.
However, the executive said other traditional tropes, such as exaggerated TNT usage will be left in as they are comical tropes that are unlikely to give the kids the wrong impressions and have become staples of the cartoon.
Fudd will now use a scythe as shown in the image above. In an attempt to soothe complaints and worries that the series has forfeited its traditions to the culture of political correctness, Browngardt argued that the series as a whole will continue to explore darker themes.
For instance, Sylvester the Cat is known to have an episode where is haunted by the ghosts of his usual targets as well as a short depiction of Satan himself in one comic.
Browngardt said that overall, he worries that the new series may gone a little too dark in an age of anti-bullying because animosity between the two characters are the core of this beloved series.
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Replaced!