When Warner Bros. announced they’d finalized a deal with NBA superstarLebron Jameslast year, many believed this confirmedSpace Jam 2was actually happening. As the NBA player has long been rumored to star in a sequel. The basketball player revealed in March that the project is still “on the radar,” but no definitive plans had been set yet. That all changed today, withStar Trek BeyondfilmmakerJustin Linentering talks to direct theSpace Jam sequelstarringLebron James.
The Hollywood Reporterreveals thatLebron Jameswill headline the sequel two decades after the original, withAndrew Dodge(Bad Words) andAlfredo Botello(Hollywood Adventures) coming aboard to write the script. While the project is still in the early phases of development, this new report claimsJustin Linis also helping to prep the script alongsideAndrew Dodge. No story details have surfaced yet, and it isn’t clear if any ofLeBron James' fellowNBA starswill be joining him in the follow-up. But that seems quite likley.
Space Jam, which will celebrate its 20th Anniversary this October, centered on NBA legendMichael Jordanas himself, teaming up with a slew ofLooney Tunescharacters to defeat a team of aliens in a game of basketball, with the future of the human race on the line. Other NBA stars who appeared in the movie includedLarry Bird,Charles Barkley,Patrick Ewing,Mugsy Bogues,Vlade Divac,Larry JohnsonandAlonzo Mourning, just to name a few. The supporting cast also includedWayne Knight,Theresa RandleandBill Murray, who played himself.
The originalSpace Jamtook in $90.4 million domestically during its theatrical run in 1996, which is the equivalent of a $174.7 million movie today, when adjusting for inflation. The movie made $230.4 million worldwide. No budget figures were released for the original movie, and it remains to be seen how large the budget will be for this sequel. But that may all depend on how large the cast turns out to be.
LeBron Jamesmade his big screen debut in last year’s breakout hit comedyTrainwreck, playing himself. He also executive produced the Starz seriesSurvivor’s Remorse, and he voiced himself in an episode of the animated seriesTeen Titans Go!.Justin Linis working with writerAndrew Dodgeon an untitled cop comedy thatDodgeis writing andLinwill produce, andDodgeis also writing an untitled TV drama for HBO thatJustin Linwill produce alongsideJeremy Renner. We’ll be sure to keep you posted with more updates onSpace Jam 2.
