‘Space Jam 2’ Title Revealed by LeBron James

By Jordan Moreau

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Everybody get up, it’s time to slam now because “Space Jam 2” has an official title, thanks to NBA superstar LeBron James.

On Thursday, the Lakers player posted a video of himself wearing a hat on his Instagram with the logo of “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” the apparent title of the Looney Tunes sequel. It was reposted by the film’s official Twitter page later that day.

James captioned the video with the year 2021, but no specific date. Back in February of 2019, Warner Bros. had announced the release date for the film to be July 16, 2021.

“Girls Trip” director Malcolm D. Lee is on board to direct the sequel to the 1996 animated film. His other credits include “Night School” and “Barbershop: The Final Cut.” Lee replaced “Random Acts of Flyness” creator Terence Nance as director last July. Nance exited the film over disagreements with producers over the vision for it.

“Space Jam: A New Legacy” marks James’ first major acting role. Previously, he played himself in the 2015 comedy “Trainwreck” along with Amy Schumer and Bill Hader. Since then, he’s hosted a talk show called “The Shop” on HBO where he interviews other celebrities and athletes in a barbershop.

The original “Space Jam” saw Michael Jordan team up with Bugs Bunny and his Looney Tunes gang to defeat evil alien basketball players, and it grossed $230 million worldwide. Fellow NBA stars Larry Bird, Charles Barkely, Patrick Ewing, Larry Johnson, Shawn Bradley and Muggsy Bogues also appeared in the film. It’s presumed that current NBA players will appear in the sequel, but none have been announced.