It was announced last week that Warner Bros. were finally pulling the trigger on making a sequel to 1996’s Space Jam, which starred NBA all-star Michael Jordan and the cast of Looney Tunes.
With Justin Lin now at the helm, original Space Jam director Joe Pytka has some very harsh advice for the sequel.
“Don’t do it. It’s doomed. Michael Jordan was the biggest star on the planet,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “When we did Space Jam, there was a perfect storm of players and ex-players available – Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing. They all had a persona that complemented the film. There are none around like that now.”
Space Jam was produced by Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters) and also starred Bill Murray and Wayne Knight. Although it didn’t get great reviews, it made over $230 million worldwide. Rumours of a sequel starring LeBron James have been circling Hollywood for a long time now, though no release date has been officially set yet.
Space Jam 2 will be directed by Justin Lin (Star Trek Beyond) and stars LeBron James (Trainwreck).
Originally published May 12, 2016. Updated June 30, 2023.
