Space Jam: A New Legacy appears to be hiding its basketball player cast. At this stage in the marketing, the only confirmed NBA star in the upcoming movie is LeBron James. However, it would be surprising if more weren’t involved.
The focus of the human story of the original Space Jam was of course Michael Jordan, but he was far from the only real-life basketball player to appear as himself in the movie. There was also basketball legend Larry Bird, who was a close friend of Jordan’s in the film and one of the people who was golfing with him when he was abducted into the world of the Looney Tunes. There was also Charles Barkley, Muggsy Bogues, Patrick Ewing, Shawn Bradley, and Larry Johnson, who were the five basketball players that had their talent stolen. After their skills gave rise to the Monstars, Barkley and the others were forced to live without their basketball talent until Jordan and the Tune Squad could win it back for them. Plus, a handful of other basketball players additionally made brief cameos in Space Jam.
Looking at what was done with its predecessor, it seems likely that Space Jam: A New Legacy will find a way to utilize other basketball stars as well, possibly as friends of James or again as opponents. There have been reports and rumors about several NBA players appearing in the movie, such as Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson, and Damian Lillard. But, there’s been no confirmation about any of them as of yet. For right now, though, the attention is only on James and the movie’s animated characters – and that could be the very reason for why other NBA favorites weren’t in the Space Jam 2 trailer or any of the other marketing for the film.
It’s important to keep in mind that Space Jam 2 may not really need other players to push the movie, or at least not at this juncture. They could be saved as surprises. After all, it already includes LeBron James, who is hands-down the biggest name in the sport today. Warner Bros. being able to focus on him, as opposed to a full cast of NBA players, speaks volumes about his star power.
Aside from James, one of the biggest appeals of Space Jam: A New Legacy is the heavy use of characters from Warner Bros.’ library. Yogi Bear, Fred Flintstone, Scooby Doo and his friends, King Kong, and more were all spotted in the trailer. Seeing LeBron James teaming up on the court with Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Sylvester is an exciting prospect on its own, but having characters from outside the Looney Tunes franchise around is a totally new element that’s generating a great deal of enthusiasm. With that in mind, it makes sense for Warner Bros. to avoid distracting from such a huge selling point.
