Space Jam: A New Legacy
Space Jam: A New Legacy (also known as Space Jam 2) is a 2021 American live-action/animated sports comedy film produced by Warner Animation Group, Proximity Media, and The SpringHill Company, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film was directed by Malcolm D. Lee from a screenplay by Juel Taylor, Tony Rettenmaier, Keenan Coogler, Terence Nance, Jesse Gordon, and Celeste Ballard, and a story by Taylor, Rettenmaier, Coogler, and Nance.[8] It serves as a standalone sequel to Space Jam (1996) and is the first theatrically released film to feature the Looney Tunes characters since Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003). The film stars basketball player LeBron James as a fictional version of himself; Don Cheadle, Khris Davis, Sonequa Martin-Green, and Cedric Joe star in live-action roles, while Jeff Bergman, Eric Bauza, and Zendaya headline the Looney Tunes voice cast. The film follows James enlisting the Looney Tunes' aid to win a basketball game in a Warner Bros.–themed virtual multiverse against a rogue artificial intelligence's avatars after James's youngest son is abducted by the AI.
For the film's soundtrack, see Space Jam: A New Legacy (soundtrack).Space Jam: A New Legacy
- Juel Taylor
- Tony Rettenmaier
- Keenan Coogler
- Terence Nance
- Jesse Gordon
- Celeste Ballard
- Juel Taylor
- Tony Rettenmaier
- Keenan Coogler
- Terence Nance[b]
- July 12, 2021 (Los Angeles)
- July 16, 2021 (United States)
115 minutes[3]
United States[4]
English
$150 million[5]
Discussions for a Space Jam successor began following its release. Director Joe Pytka was attached to return in that capacity and Spike Brandt and Tony Cervone signed on as the animation directors; however, the project was stalled due to Michael Jordan's refusal to return. Several possible spin-offs focusing on other athletes, including Jeff Gordon, Tiger Woods, and Tony Hawk, were also discussed but never materialized. After several years in development, a LeBron James-led sequel was officially announced in 2014 with filming under Nance taking place from June to September 2019 around Los Angeles. Several weeks into filming, Nance left the project in July 2019 and was replaced by Lee. Traditional animation was done by Company 3 Animation and Tonic DNA, while visual effects and computer animation were outsourced to Industrial Light & Magic.
Space Jam: A New Legacy premiered in Los Angeles on July 12, 2021, and was released nationwide in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on July 16, and through HBO Max for one month. The film was a box-office bomb, grossing $163 million worldwide against a $150 million production budget, and received generally negative reviews from critics for its humor, overlong runtime, and particularly for its extensive product placement of WarnerMedia properties.[9] It won three of its four Golden Raspberry Award nominations, including Worst Actor for James.
Plot
In 1998, a young LeBron James is dropped off at a youth league basketball game by his mother. His friend Malik gives him a Game Boy, which LeBron plays with until Coach C demands that he concentrate on the game. He misses a potential buzzer beater and is reprimanded by Coach C for not staying focused. An ashamed LeBron discards the Game Boy.
In the present day, LeBron encourages his sons, Darius and Dominic, to pursue basketball careers. While LeBron's attempts with Darius are successful, Dom aspires to become a video game developer. LeBron, Malik, and Dom are later invited to Warner Bros. Studios to discuss a film deal. LeBron rejects the idea while Dom is interested in the studio's Warner 3000 software, particularly its AI, Al-G Rhythm. Their differing views lead to an argument as Dom reveals his resentment towards his father’s advice. Having become self-aware and desiring more recognition in the world, Al-G lures LeBron and Dom to the basement server room and traps them in the Warner Bros. Serververse.
Al-G takes Dom prisoner and orders LeBron to form a basketball team to compete against his own, only earning his freedom if he wins, before sending him to Tune World. LeBron finds Tune World abandoned except for Bugs Bunny, who explains that Al-G persuaded the other Looney Tunes to leave their world and explore the Serververse. Using Marvin's spacecraft, the two travel to various worlds to locate and recruit the other Looney Tunes to form the Tune Squad. Meanwhile, Al-G manipulates Dom into allowing his help in upgrading himself and his game, which Al-G intends to use against LeBron.
In Tune World, despite Bugs' protests, LeBron insists on teaching the Tune Squad the fundamentals of basketball. They encounter Al-G's team, the Goon Squad, composed of avatars of basketball players and led by Dom. Al-G transforms Tune World to CGI, live streams the game and abducts several viewers, including LeBron's family, into the Serververse, while its inhabitants arrive as spectators. Al-G threatens to delete the Looney Tunes and imprison the spectators permanently if the Goon Squad wins.
The Goon Squad dominate the first half, using their upgrades to score extra points. LeBron realizes his mistake and allows the Looney Tunes to use their cartoon physics during the second half. During a time-out, LeBron apologizes to Dom for not listening to his ideas. Dom forgives LeBron and joins the Tune Squad while Al-G assumes control of the game and uses his abilities to substantially strengthen himself and the Goon Squad. Recalling a glitch in Dom's game, wherein a character is deleted and the game crashes after a specific move is performed, LeBron volunteers to perform the move, but Bugs does so at the last moment, sacrificing himself in the process. LeBron scores the winning point with Dom's help, deleting Al-G and the Goon Squad. The Looney Tunes and the Serververse are restored and LeBron, his family and the other real-world spectators are returned to their world as Bugs reconciles with his friends before being deleted.
One week later, LeBron, respecting Dom's wishes, allows him to attend the E3 Game Design Camp. He subsequently reunites with Bugs, who reveals that his cartoon physics allowed him to regenerate and that his friends have also entered the real world. LeBron, having accepted the Looney Tunes as his extended family, allows them to live with him temporarily.
Production
Development
A sequel to Space Jam was planned as early as 1996, shortly after the original film was released in theaters worldwide. As development began, Space Jam 2 was going to involve a new basketball competition with Michael Jordan and the Looney Tunes and Berserk-O!, a new alien villain who was planned to be voiced by Mel Brooks. Artist Bob Camp was tasked with designing Berserk-O! and his henchmen, and with the proposed casting in mind, Camp designed Berserk-O! to resemble Brooks. Joe Pytka would have returned to direct and Spike Brandt and Tony Cervone signed on as the animation directors. However, Jordan did not agree to star in a sequel. According to Camp, a producer lied to the studio by claiming that Jordan had signed on in order to keep development going. Without Jordan involved with the project, Warner Bros. was uninterested and cancelled plans for Space Jam 2.[51]
The potential sequel reentered development as Spy Jam and was to star Jackie Chan in a different script.[52] The studio was also planning a film titled Race Jam which would have starred Jeff Gordon.[52] Additionally, Pytka revealed that following the first film's success, he had been pitched a story for a sequel that would have starred professional golfer Tiger Woods,[52] with Jordan in a smaller role. Pytka explained how the idea came from an out-of-studio script conference, with people who worked on the original film allegedly involved.[53][54] Producer Ivan Reitman was reportedly in favor of a film which would again star Jordan.[55] The follow-up films were ultimately cancelled in favor of Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), though Gordon did make a cameo in Back in Action. A film titled Skate Jam was in early development with Tony Hawk in the starring role. Plans were underway for production to begin immediately following the release of Looney Tunes: Back in Action, but were cancelled due to the poor financial performance of said film despite improved critical reception to Space Jam.[56]
Marketing
The marketing campaign from Warner Bros. for Space Jam: A New Legacy began on July 31, 2020, when a hat with the film's logo became available on the studio's shop website.[104] In August, it was announced that Moose Toys made a deal with Warner Bros. to make merchandise for the film along with the 2021 live-action/animated Tom and Jerry hybrid film.[105]
On April 3, 2021, the first trailer was released, which revealed a number of references and characters who made cameos from franchises owned by Warner Bros.[106] Jordan Hoffman from Vanity Fair compared the trailer to Disney's Tron franchise and fellow Warner Bros. film Ready Player One (2018).[107] That same month, Hasbro also made a deal with Warner Bros. to make two Space Jam: A New Legacy versions of their board game properties Monopoly and Connect Four.[108]
That May, Warner Bros. partnered with over 200 brands worldwide to promote Space Jam: A New Legacy.[109] Other promotional partners included Kraft Heinz, General Mills, Funko, Hallmark Cards, GameStop, Mattel, and Spalding.[110] On June 9, Nike and Converse revealed their tie-in merchandise for the film, which included numerous footwear and sportswear. The film is also set to debut the new LeBron 19 shoes.[111] The following day, Warner Bros. released another trailer for the film took the same effect as the first one, in addition to showing more focus on the Goon Squad (composed of avatars of various famous NBA players such as Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard, Diana Taurasi, Nneka Ogwumike), and Zendaya as Lola Bunny.[112] Brianna Zigler of Paste remarked "The film looks like it might be fun in a turn-your-brain-off-and-enter-the-void sort of way."[113] On June 29, DC Comics released a graphic novel adaption of the film.[114]
A tie-in video game, with ideas designed by Ricky of the United States and Narayan of India and developed by Digital Eclipse, was released on July 1, exclusively on the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Perks program.[115] That same month, McDonald's launched its limited time campaign in the participating restaurants by including twelve toys free with the purchase of a Happy Meal,[116] while Warner Bros. collaborated with Nifty's to release a collection of 91,000 limited-edition NFTs featuring characters from the movie including Bugs Bunny, Tweety, Porky Pig and LeBron James. A large amount of NFTs are planned to be released to balance rarity with broad accessibility, driving "engagement around the film for as many Space Jam fans as possible".[117]
The film was promoted with the third Teen Titans Go! movie, titled Teen Titans Go! See Space Jam, which aired on Cartoon Network on June 20, 2021.[118]
Release
Theatrical and streaming
Space Jam: A New Legacy was theatrically released by Warner Bros. Pictures in the United States on July 16, 2021. It was also simultaneously released on HBO Max, available for subscribers of the ad-free plan to view at no extra cost for one month.[119][120][121] The film premiered in Los Angeles on July 12, 2021.[122] In September 2020, SpringHill Company signed a four-year contract with Universal Pictures, making this their fourth and final independent production.[123][124]
Samba TV reported that 2.1 million U.S. households streamed the film in its opening weekend, one of the best totals for its AB Warner Bros./HBO Max day-in-date release, with Cleveland being the most-watched city.[125] The film was watched in over 4.2 million U.S. households by the end of its first 30 days.[126]
Home media
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Studio Distribution Services released Space Jam: A New Legacy on digital on September 3, 2021, and on Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD on October 5.[127]
Reception
Box office
Space Jam: A New Legacy grossed $70.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $93.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $163.7 million.[6][7]
Space Jam: A New Legacy was released with Escape Room: Tournament of Champions on July 16, 2021, and was projected to gross $20 million from 3,950 theaters in its opening weekend.[128] It made $13.1 million on its first day.[129] The film debuted earning $31.1 million from 3,965 theaters,[5][130][131] the best opening weekend for a family film and the second highest for a Warner Bros. film of the COVID-19 pandemic behind Godzilla vs. Kong ($31.6 million), and besting the original ($27.5 million without inflation).[132][133] Its second weekend earnings dropped by 69% to $9.5 million;[134] the steep decline was blamed in-part on the film's simultaneous digital release on HBO Max.[135] It earned another $4.2 million on its third weekend.[136]
Critical response
Space Jam: A New Legacy received negative reviews from critics.[137][138] According to Jordan Williams, the majority of critical reviews were targeted the film's "lack of fun humor and earnest light-heartedness, overt promotion of Warner Bros. property, disappointment with celebrity and NBA roles, and the long two-hour runtime compared to [the first] Space Jam's 87 minutes".[9] On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 25% based on 229 reviews with an average rating of 4.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Despite LeBron James' best efforts to make a winning team out of the Tune Squad, Space Jam: A New Legacy trades the zany, meta-humor of its predecessor for a shameless and tired exercise in IP-driven branding."[139] At Metacritic, it scored 36 out of 100 based on 46 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[140] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, the same as the first film, while PostTrak reported 78% of filmgoers gave it a positive score, with 58% saying they would definitely recommend it.[141]
The A.V. Club's A.A. Dowd gave it a "C−", stating that the film's comprehensiveness did "nothing", although it made misdirections which was subject to "glittering CGI trash heap of cameos, pat life lessons, and stale internet catchphrases."[142] James Marsh gave the film 1 out of 5 stars and criticized its use of product placement, which he felt alienated supporters of the NBA and Looney Tunes. Calling it a "supposed family comedy...woefully devoid of laughs," Marsh concluded it fell just short of "asking audiences point blank to subscribe to HBO Max," and was ultimately "a vacuous and cynical experience that shoots far wide of the mark."[143] In her 2.5 out of 5 star review, Wenlei Ma criticized the film for overtly promoting Warner Bros. IPs.[144] Alonso Duralde of TheWrap said that the film "barely has jokes for the Looney Tunes, let alone the entire Warner Bros. cast of characters".[145]
Hagan Osborne of FilmInk was more positive: "What is most thrilling about A New Legacy is the liveliness of the worlds created, with each destination carrying with it a varying style of animation that brings with it added freshness."[146] Amy Nicholson of Variety said, "Space Jam: A New Legacy is chaotic, rainbow sprinkle-colored nonsense that, unlike the original, manages to hold together as a movie."[147] Kristen Page-Kirby of The Washington Post gave the film 2 stars out of 4, saying: "There's no real reason for this sequel/tribute to the original 1996 film to exist, but now that it does, there's no reason to wish that it didn't", and added that the film "has just enough momentum, heart and spirit, even as it does both way too much and not quite enough ... If this is corporate synergy fired up to a terrifying new level, there's still enough heart at the movie's center to keep it from becoming all business."[148] Korey Coleman and Martin Thomas of Double Toasted, the former of whom worked as an animator on the original Space Jam, both gave it a positive review. While they admitted the film felt like an advertisement for HBO Max, they praised the creative use of the characters and the acting, though they took issue with outdated references.[149] Keith Hawkes of Parent Previews criticized the film cashing in on nostalgia for a classic franchise.[150]
Brian Lowry of CNN wrote: "The first Space Jam was hardly a classic, which should temper expectations. Yet even by that standard, this marketing-driven exercise too often plays like the Acme version of it."[151] Simran Hans of The Guardian gave 2 out of 5 stars and wrote: "The sequel, on the other hand, seems to earnestly revel in the recyclable potential of the WB archive. Its elastic, mile-a-minute animated sequences insert Lola Bunny (Zendaya; wasted) into the world of Wonder Woman and send Tweety and Granny into The Matrix. James's natural charisma should allow the film to soar but he's bogged down by an avalanche of distracting cameos, from Gremlins to Game of Thrones."[152] Mary Sollosi of Entertainment Weekly gave a D+ grade, saying: "Here's the thing about basketball: It is extremely watchable. Here's the thing about Space Jam: A New Legacy: It's not."[153]
Joe Pytka, the director of the original Space Jam, expressed his hatred towards the film upon its release. Among his complaints, Pytka compared LeBron James to Michael Jordan, who was arguably the most famous celebrity when the first film was released in comparison to James, criticized the story for not tying up emotionally to LeBron's life, felt the first film's cast and soundtrack were superior to the ones of A New Legacy and saw Bugs Bunny's role in the film as "heartbreaking".[154] Pytka had earlier criticized Warner Bros.' decision to make a Space Jam sequel in 2016 back when Justin Lin was attached to direct, dismissing the notion as "ridiculous" despite working with LeBron James and Steph Curry, feeling that neither of them was a "transcendent figure" like Jordan.[155] In October 2021, Hwang Dong-hyuk, the creator of Korean television series Squid Game, criticized James' final moments in each episodes of the scene in the protagonist Seong Gi-hun (portrayed by Lee Jung-jae), saying "Have you seen 'Space Jam 2?' LeBron James is cool and can say what he wants. I respect that. I'm very thankful he watched the whole series. But I wouldn't change my ending. That's my ending. If he has his own ending that would satisfy him, maybe he could make his own sequel. I'll check it out and maybe send him a message saying, 'I liked your whole show, except the ending.'"[156]
Accolades
At the 42nd Golden Raspberry Awards, Space Jam: A New Legacy received a nomination for Worst Picture; and won Worst Actor for James, Worst Screen Combo for James and "any Warner cartoon character (or Time-Warner product) he dribbles on", and Worst Prequel, Remake, Rip-off or Sequel.[157] It was nominated for the Comedy Movie of 2021 at the 47th People's Choice Awards, but lost to Free Guy,[158] and received awards for the Hollywood Professional Association Awards' Outstanding Sound – Theatrical Feature[159] and the Alliance of Women Film Journalists' Time Waster Remake or Sequel Award.[160] Two awards for the film were nominated at the 2022 Kids' Choice Awards included Favorite Movie and Favorite Movie Actor for James, but both lost to Spider-Man: No Way Home.[161]
In popular culture
South Park co-creator Matt Stone revealed that if an episode was to be produced about the film industry's impact on American culture, "it would, for sure, be about Space Jam 2."[162] The streaming specials South Park: Post Covid and South Park: Post Covid: The Return of Covid depict the film as a principal cause for society's collapse during the COVID-19 pandemic.[163]
The Rick and Morty sixth season episode "Full Meta Jackrick" also mockingly makes mention of the titular characters' cameos in the film over the course of its meta-narrative, with Rick describing the unfolding events as being "worse than you think, Morty. We're basting in meta radiation right now. Our credibility is being permanently eroded. Every second we spend here is the equivalent of ten Space Jam cameos."[164] In the seventh season episode "Unmortricken", Rick tells Morty that he killed their Space Jam counterparts, showing them in body bags, jokingly explaining that they "welcomed death".
Future
Lee has expressed interest in making a third Space Jam film with Dwayne Johnson as the lead and focusing on wrestling instead of basketball.[165]