While it took 25 years for the Space Jam: A New Legacy to become a virtual reality, ideas are already rolling in for who could star in the next Looney Tunes sports tourney. A New Legacy director Malcolm D. Lee’s suggestion? Retired wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
“Dwayne Johnson would be an interesting choice,” Lee tells EW. “It would be different. I’m not exactly sure what his skillset would be, maybe he goes back to wrestling. That might be interesting.”
We can see it now, Bugs Bunny and the gang swapping out their jerseys for wrestling unitards, and Taz going absolutely apeshit on some technologically advanced alien. It all comes down to whether or not they could actually write the third Space Jam installment.
“I never say never,” Lee continues. “It’s all going to be about whether the fans respond to this positively. But I think the bar has been set so high in terms of the first one with this global iconic superstar in Michael Jordan, and now the same global iconic superstar in LeBron James, who transcends sports. Who is that next person to put into that universe? And then you’ve got to find a script and story that’s good enough to not repeat what’s been done but will capture the spirit of it and keep it going.”
Maybe Johnson can wrestle Warner Bros. properties with a VR headset on in space. As lifeless as the newest rendition of Space Jam turned out to be, it’s not too out there to suggest Johnson as a potential star for a third film. While he’s not a basketball player, he is still certainly a baller, maintaining the level of charisma that brought him fame as a wrestler all those years ago.
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Unlike James and Jordan, Johnson has a healthy amount of acting experience, which could improve the watchability of a third film. Instead of watching professional sports stars’ stodgy attempts to act alongside animated cartoon animals, you could watch a former professional sports star turned actor actually act with animated cartoon animals.
As much as Johnson is known for his WWE wrestling career, Johnson’s had starring roles The Fast And The Furious franchise, Disney’s Moana, and stars in forthcoming Jungle Cruise film alongside Emily Blunt. An action film junkie, Johnson will play his first superhero role as D.C.’s Black Adam. To say these performances are Oscar-worthy would be quite the stretch, but Johnson was shockingly 2020's highest paid actor, which is more than LeBron or Jordan can say about their acting careers.
Plus, all three of their last names start with “J,” and how fun would that be?