LeBron James is ready to hit the court in 'Space Jam: A New Legacy' first look

It looks like LeBron James is putting the Los Angeles Lakers on pause and joining the Tune Squad. The first images for Space Jam: A New Legacy have been revealed, showing off the NBA player in action and ready to hit the basketball court with his animated friends.

The images for the first look were released by Entertainment Weekly and feature LeBron with Bugs Bunny, Lola Bunny, Tweety, Daffy Duck, Taz, Cedric Joe and Don Cheadle. He shared the photos on his Instagram, writing, “Y’ALL NOT READY FOR THIS SQUAD!!!! Let’s get it!”

LeBron also shared a photo from his I Promise School in Akron, Ohio, where students posed with the Space Jam: A New Legacy poster.

The first look images have us extremely excited for the July 16th release date. In the new film, LeBron plays a “heightened version” of himself, while Cedric Joe plays his son Dom. LeBron and Dom are pulled into a video game’s “Server-verse,” where they have to work with Al G Rhythm, played by Don Cheadle, who is an artificial intelligence seeking influence and followers. He’s jealous of LeBron’s Instagram following and uses Dom’s computer to try to steal his followers by challenging him to a basketball game. To save Dom and escape the virtual reality, LeBron has to team up with the Loony Tunes squad and play virtual basketball.

LeBron admitted that he was nervous that fans would think he was imitating Michael Jordan when he took on the role. “In my younger days, part of my thinking was 'Space Jam was so good, how can I top this?’” he told EW. “There’s always going to be conversations about LeBron trying to do everything Michael [did]. But I’ve gotten older, and you know who you are. You know what you stand for.” 

"There was a lot of films growing up for me, but Space Jam was up there," LeBron said of the 1996 classic film. "For my friends and I, just growing up, loving the NBA, obviously loving Michael Jordan, and loving the Looney Tunes, it was an automatic and a very organic blend between the two worlds. It was fun to see what MJ and Bugs and Taz and all those great Tunes were able to go through in that first movie. It was pretty cool, as a kid, wanting to see the same inspiration from movies and from people that you look up to, and people that you watch on a day-to-day basis. So it definitely was a big part of my childhood." 

LeBron initially passed on the Space Jam sequel 15 years ago because he wanted to focus on his career but now he’s ready, and TBH, the world needs the Space Jam sequel right about now. "It’s something Mike created and is his,” LeBron said of the franchise. “I held that with a lot of responsibility.”

Producer Ryan Coogler also shared why it’s the perfect time to release the sequel. "We were reminded very quickly why the Looney Tunes work," Coogler said. "When we watch the parts of the film [featuring] the Tunes, you have a smile come over your face because, if you’re from our generation, you miss them.”

Space Jam: A New Legacy filmed over the last two NBA offseasons. The film will feature cameos from basketball stars, including, Chris Paul, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard, Kyle Kuzma, Diana Taurasi, Nneka Ogwumike and Chiney Ogwumike.

Fans of LeBron and the Looney Tunes took to Twitter to discuss the first look photos after they were released. 

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