'Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up' Review: A Charming Theatrical Return for the Endearing Looneys
- Dan Bremner
- 9 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Dan Bremner - February 10, 2026
After an oddly drawn-out release journey, it’s genuinely amazing to finally see The Day the Earth Blew Up on a UK cinema screen. Premiering way back in mid-2024, delayed stateside until 2025, and only now reaching British theatres, this feels like a minor miracle given Warner Bros’ recent hostility toward its own animated output. After the near-tragedy of Coyote vs. Acme nearly being tax-write-off’d into oblivion, just getting a new Looney Tunes film feels like a small victory in itself, and thankfully, this one mostly earns its existence.
While it’s not peak Looney Tunes, The Day the Earth Blew Up is a thoroughly enjoyable, energetic, and often very funny slice of 2D animated sci-fi lunacy. Anchored almost entirely by the volatile pairing of Daffy Duck and Porky Pig, the film leans hard into their odd-couple dynamic (Plus a funny backstory where Porky gets his stutter due to Daffy bonking his head with a vase as a baby), using their constant bickering and mismatched personalities as the engine for both the comedy and the plot. Daffy’s unfiltered insanity bouncing off Porky’s tightly wound anxiety remains a timeless formula, and the film wisely trusts that dynamic to carry long stretches without needing to overcomplicate things.
Visually, this is where the film truly shines. The hand-drawn 2D animation is gorgeous, vibrant, expressive, and full of personality. In an era where the magic of 3D animation is rarely showing a “wow” factor (They showed the trailer Pixar's Hoppers before this and I nearly fell asleep from that alone), seeing a theatrically released animated feature that proudly embraces traditional animation feels refreshing and charming. The clean character designs, painted backgrounds, and fluid motion recall the golden age of Looney Tunes while still feeling modern and polished. It’s not just nostalgic window-dressing either, the animation itself is packed with physical comedy, squash-and-stretch exaggeration, and visual gags that reward actually watching the screen instead of just listening for jokes.
The comedy largely delivers. There’s a steady stream of slapstick, sight gags, verbal nonsense, and absurd escalations that genuinely landed with the cinema crowd. Eric Bauza deserves huge credit for his dual performance as both Daffy and Porky. The timing, vocal differentiation, and sheer stamina required to carry so much of the film’s runtime is impressive. His performances feel faithful without being stale impersonations, and the rapid-fire banter between the two characters is easily the film’s biggest strength.
The sci-fi angle is also a fun fit, riffing on classic alien invasion and body-snatcher tropes with a Looney Tunes twist. There are plenty of affectionate nods to mid-century sci-fi paranoia and B-movie aesthetics, which blend nicely with the franchise’s inherent absurdity. When the film leans into that mash-up, it feels inventive and playful rather than just derivative.
Where things wobble is in the feature-length structure. The plot is thin, predictable, and occasionally feels like a loose collection of short-film ideas stitched together (A montage of failed jobs from the duo is great stuff though). There’s a noticeable sag in the middle where the energy dips, and the final act resolves itself a little too conveniently. Some of the modern references like TikTok jokes, boba tea, and other contemporary nods feel awkwardly shoehorned in and already dated, clashing with the otherwise timeless tone the film is clearly aiming for.
It’s also hard not to feel the absence of key Looney Tunes players. With no Bugs Bunny, no Marvin the Martian, and a relatively small supporting cast, the film lacks that full ensemble many long-time fans associate with the franchise. While focusing on Daffy and Porky gives the film cohesion, it does slightly limit the sheer anarchic potential that Looney Tunes can reach at its best. While it sadly hasn't done too well, I hope we get more of these in the future, whether be ensemble pieces or more standalone features focusing on a single character or two, count me in.
Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up is a very easy film to like. It’s funny, visually delightful with its vibrant 2D animation, and made with a clear affection for these characters and their legacy. It may not reach the anarchic heights of classic shorts or fully justify its jump to feature length, but as a theatrical Looney Tunes outing in the modern day, it’s far better than it had any right to be. A frequently charming reminder of why these characters have endured for nearly a century. Imperfect, but very welcome.
'Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up' is out now in select cinemas with wider release on February 13.
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