Industrial Light & Magic animation supervisor, Kevin Martel, disclosed that post-production animation for Space Jam: A New Legacy has finally concluded. It is a sequel to the Michael Jordan-starrer hit of 1996.
Martel shared this news via his Twitter account. In the heartfelt message, he announced that the post-production on the awaited sequel was finally complete:
Kevin went on to thank his team for all the hard work they did in bringing this movie to fruition. Despite the fact that due to the pandemic, a lot of work had to be done from home, yet the “Space Jamimators” did not flinch an inch.
Another ILM animator, Shawn Kelly, went on to commend both the film and Martel, stating:
I have rarely felt like I have learned as much as I did on Space Jam 2, and a lot of that is due to this guy right here. Truly one of ILM’s secret weapons
Shawn Kelly (about Kevin Martel)
Space Jam 2 will see basketball champion and global icon LeBron James and his young son Dom (Cedric Joe) trapped in a Serververse. It is a virtual space ruled by a rogue A.I. named Al-G Rhythm.
LeBron can rescue his son and get both of them home safely. But first, he has to lead Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Lola Bunny and the whole crew of notoriously disobedient Looney Tunes to win a basketball match against Al-G’s digitized victors on the court, the Goon Squad. The squad comprises energized virtual avatars of professional basketball stars.
A sequel to Space Jam was planned as early as 1996, but Michael Jordan had refused to star in one. The follow-up films like Spy Jam (was to star Jackie Chan) and Race Jam (was to star Jeff Gordon) had eventually fallen off in favor of Looney Tunes: Back In Action (2003).
Another film titled Skate Jam (was to star Tony Hawk) was called off due to the poor financial performance of the previous installment. Later, in 2014, LeBron James was quoted as saying:
I’ve always loved Space Jam. It was one of my favorite movies growing up. If I have the opportunity, it will be great.
LeBron James
So, ultimately in 2015, James and his film studio, SpringHill Entertainment signed off a deal with Warner Bros. And after 25 years of jerky ride, Space Jam 2 is finally going to see the light of day.
The movie is scheduled to premiere in theatres on July 16, 2021. It will also be available to stream on HBO Max.
About Space Jam: A New Legacy (Space Jam 2)
Space Jam: A New Legacy (also known as Space Jam 2) is an upcoming American live-action/animated sports comedy film directed by Malcolm D. Lee, from a screenplay by Juel Taylor, Tony Rettenmaier, Keenan Coogler, and Terence Nance.
The film is a sequel to Space Jam (1996) and stars basketball player LeBron James, as well as Don Cheadle, Khris Davis, Sonequa Martin-Green, and Cedric Joe. The film also features the Looney Tunes characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Marvin the Martian, Pepé Le Pew, Tweety, Sylvester, Foghorn Leghorn, Porky Pig, and Lola Bunny.
Like the previous hybrid films, it will be a combination of live-action and traditional hand drawn 2D animation with some CGI effects
Basketball champion and global icon LeBron James and his young son Dom (Cedric Joe) – who dreams of being a video game developer rather than follow his father’s footsteps – find themselves trapped in Serververse, a virtual space ruled by a rogue A.I. named Al-G Rhythm (Don Cheadle).
LeBron must save his son and get them home safe by leading Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Lola Bunny and the whole gang of notoriously undisciplined Looney Tunes to win a basketball match against Al-G’s digitized champions on the court, the Goon Squad.
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