Warner Bros. Discovery has snapped its fingers, causing half of its library of classic Looney Tunes shorts to vanish from HBO Max.As of Dec. 31, 2022, HBO Max has removed Seasons 16-31 of Looney Tunes, causing the total number of classic animated shorts available on the platform to drop from 511 to 255, with a total of 256 having been taken down. At the time of writing, Seasons 1-15 of Looney Tunes are still available on HBO Max, as are related shows like Cartoon Network's The Looney Tunes Show and HBO Max's own Looney Tunes Cartoons.RELATED: DC's Batwheels Renewed for Season 2 at Cartoon Network, HBO Max

After all the controversy surrounding the lack of guns in the first season of HBO Max's Looney Tunes Cartoons, the series' second season has given Elmer Fudd his weapon of choice back.The segment "Rotund Rabbit," the first half of Season 2, Episode 6, opens with Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny with his hunting rifle. Elmer shoots at Bugs, but in a classically wacky Looney Tunes gag, Bugs runs so fast that the bullet pauses in midair and, growing a mouth and arms, breathes heavily and announces "That's it, I quit!" The bullet turns around, putting on a hat and carrying a suitcase.RELATED: Tweety Mysteries Is a Live-Action Show With an Animated Tweety Bird

When Star Wars was first released in theaters in 1977, George Lucas wanted the classic Looney Tunes short "Duck Dodgers in the 24th-and-a-half Century" to screen before the movie whenever possible.In response to a tweet about the cartoon from MeTV's Toon In with Me classic cartoon program, Mark Hamill confirmed "George really did want this classic Daffy Duck cartoon shown before every screening of [Star Wars]. It would've been an icebreaker to let the audience know what was coming was less than dead serious. I was disappointed when we couldn't get the rights to it & it didn't happen."RELATED: Star Wars Fans Should Pay Attention to Aspyr Media

Scopely's mobile game Looney Tunes World of Mayhem is getting a sizable new addition in an upcoming special event with Big Chungus.The official Twitter account for the game posted a teaser video that's generating buzz among players. Big Chungus, a fan-favorite meme from the annals of Reddit, will be available as a playable character at the start of April. He gets his own special event called Chungabunga and will join the likes of Porky Pig, Foghorn Leghorn, Daffy Duck and, of course, Bugs Bunny as playable characters in the free-to-play battling game. The quick clip in the announcement shows the plus-sized version of Bugs peeking out from behind a cartoon Earth with the text "The World May Not Be Ready For This" accompanying it.Related: Space Jam Had an AWFUL Video Game Tie-In That You Forgot About

After NYT columnist Charles M. Blow wrote a piece on how the Looney Tunes character Pepé Le Pew perpetuates rape culture, the character was indefinitely shelved from future Warner Bros. projects. The move to retire the animated skunk left the internet astir with opinions.The sudden analysis of the French skunk only increased after it was announced that the Space Jam sequel cut Pepé's sole scene in the film, regardless that that decision was made in 2019 when the project switched directorial hands. Now, the daughter of Le Pew's creator spoke out against the sudden controversy to TMZ, citing the times to be at fault, not the character.RELATED: Pepe Le Pew Cut From Space Jam 2, Scene Was About Sexual ConsentThe Hollywood publication reported that it was "the times that caught up with him" as the main reason for this cultural analysis, writing that the character -- in the publication's words -- was never intended to be "rape-y." The conversation between the publication and Linda Jones focused on how the animated character never suggested, attempted or showed a scene of rape in his Looney Tunes tenure. From the summarized conversation, it seems that Jones said the approach to Le Pew was meant to show his failures as a "suitor."Jones compared how Le Pew's "grabby" nature to Penelope Pussycat doesn't "age well" in today's cultural context; however, it's worth noting that Jones' direct quotes were not published so this statement is just a reflection of what was summarized by the publication.RELATED: Warner Bros. Has Shelved Pepé Le Pew IndefinitelyPost-publication of his NYT article, Blow shared his perspective on the sudden debate of whether or not Le Pew was perpetuating rape culture during any era on Twitter, noting specific Looney Tunes scenes where Le Pew grabbed or kissed Penelope without her consent. Blow also referenced Le Pew's habit to block the cat's ability to escape.

Speedy Gonzales voice actor Gabriel Iglesias recently defended the Looney Tunes character following the publication of a column in The New York Times, which accused the Space Jam: A New Legacy character of advancing negative stereotypes about Mexican people."I am the voice of Speedy Gonzales in the new Space Jam. Does this mean they are gonna try to cancel Fluffy too?" Iglesias tweeted, alongside an animated GIF of the character. "U can't catch me cancel culture. I'm the fastest mouse in all of Mexico," the comedian added.RELATED: Space Jam 2's Lola Bunny Lives With Wonder Woman's Amazons

In the world of animation, Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes is a cultural juggernaut. Having existed in some form or another for 90 years, the classic characters have been a staple of many several generations.Recently, Warner Bros. produced a brand new Looney Tunes cartoon series for HBO Max, done in the style of the classic shorts from the late '40s through to the late '60s. However, the show received some pushback after animators removed Elmer Fudd's hunting rifle, which is seen as a staple of the character by some.RELATED: Looney Tunes: HBO Max Series Bans Elmer Fudd's RifleOne of the animators behind the new show, Michael Ruocco, took to Twitter to respond to the backlash.

Last week, NBCUniversal unveiled its programming line-up for its newly launched premium streaming service Peacock. This week it was WarnerMedia's turn to pull out all the stops to showcase its own digital platform, HBO Max. The upcoming subscription-based streaming service led the charge of new trailers this week, with each of the original programs available when it launches next month receiving a full trailer.Here are all the biggest and best trailers, teasers, and promos from the final full week of April 2020.RELATED: Movie Trailers & TV Promos of the Week, From Capone to Valley Girl

One of the most bizarre (and memorable) parts of Tom King's run on Batman is undoubtedly the Batman/Elmer Fudd special. Released as part of the DC/Looney Tunes crossover event, the issue recast the various Looney Tunes characters as denizens of Gotham's underworld, pitting the noir-inspired hitman version of Fudd against Batman after the apparent murder of their mutual love interest, Silver St. Cloud.RELATED: A Classic Batman Villain Returns in Detective Comics Annual #2While the Eisner-nominated special has been referenced occasionally in other parts of the King run on Batman, it looks like the story is receiving a full-blown sequel. King revealed on Twitter that he will be reuniting with Len Weeks, who provided the art for the original story, for the upcoming Batman #67.