Review | Space Jam: A New Legacy movie review – LeBron James fails to save sequel that’s been long in the making

LA Lakers star LeBron James is passable in this long-awaited but highly disappointing sequel to the 1996 Space Jam original starring NBA legend Michael Jordan

Guilty of blatant product placement, it neglects NBA fans and Looney Tunes aficionados alike – and for a supposed family comedy it is woefully short on laughs

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LeBron James in a still from Space Jam: A New Legacy (category: I), directed by Malcolm D. Lee. Don Cheadle also stars.

Published: 4:00pm, 15 Jul 2021Updated: 4:05pm, 15 Jul 2021

1/5 stars

Twenty five years after basketball legend Michael Jordan was drafted by Bugs Bunny and the rest of the Looney Tunes crew in the live-action-animated adventure Space Jam, Warner Brothers attempts to recapture the magic with current NBA icon LeBron James.

While the first film was a box office slam dunk, this belated sequel can barely be considered a well-intentioned rimshot, rehashing as it does the events of the first film while assaulting the audience with a deluge of references to the studio’s vast back catalogue. Space Jam: A New Legacy is a vacuous and cynical experience that shoots far wide of the mark.

In a bizarre set-up that is equal parts Ready Player One, The Congress and Star Wars, LeBron James (as himself) rejects an offer from Warner Bros. to scan his digital likeness for use across its new digital media platform.

Outraged by his decision, the AI algorithm responsible for the proposal, Al-G Rhythm (Don Cheadle giving it his all), sucks James and his son Dom (Cedric Joe) into the matrix – sorry, the “ServerVerse” – banishing the ungrateful athlete to Tune World, while taking the boy under his own wing.