Space Jam A New Legacy Director Says Film Strived For A “Video Game Experience”

Space Jam: A New Legacy director Malcolm D. Lee was trying to get a video game feel for the upcoming movie. He and some of the cast sat down with SLAM to talk about the Serververse and the battle on the hardwood. LeBron James' feature has become widely discussed on social media and the scope of this project can't be understated. Warner Bros. is letting this creative team harness an unprecedented amount of properties to populate those stands for the new Space Jam. "For me, it was like, Let's have as much of a technical and fun video game experience," Lee told the publication. "I wanted to make it a very immersive experience, you know, as if we were all at the game as audience members." The director also had a hysterical story about his star channeling video games for his performance.

"I remember one moment, one of our motion capture performers had to throw LeBron an alley-oop, and we put the camera behind the basket," Lee says. "So, it was a very small window to get the shot. So, I said, Hey, don't throw it too high. And LeBron said, Too high? That was after the third take because the first two takes weren't quite there. So, LeBron caught it kind of high and really just threw his arm back and threw it down and I jumped out of my seat. And he didn't say anything after that, but I know he wanted to say, Was that too high? And I loved it because I wasn't really trying to motivate him, but it was kind of a happy accident."

Check out Warner Bros. description of A New Legacy right here: "Welcome to the Jam! NBA champion and global icon LeBron James goes on an epic adventure alongside timeless Tune Bugs Bunny with the animated/live-action event 'Space Jam: A New Legacy,' from director Malcolm D. Lee and an innovative filmmaking team including Ryan Coogler and Maverick Carter. This transformational journey is a manic mash-up of two worlds that reveals just how far some parents will go to connect with their kids."

"When LeBron and his young son Dom are trapped in a digital space by a rogue A.I., LeBron must get them home safe by leading Bugs, Lola Bunny, and the whole gang of notoriously undisciplined Looney Tunes to victory over the A.I.'s digitized champions on the court: a powered-up roster of professional basketball stars as you've never seen them before. It's Tunes versus Goons in the highest-stakes challenge of his life, that will redefine LeBron's bond with his son and shine a light on the power of being yourself. The ready-for-action Tunes destroy convention, supercharge their unique talents and surprise even 'King' James by playing the game their own way."

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