Space Jam type Music genre Soundtracks

The internet was overjoyed at the recent announcement that the long-awaited Space Jam sequel is finally happening, with this installment starring LeBron James instead of Michael Jordan. One person who isn’t super enthused about the sequel though? The original film’s director, Joe Pytka: Pytka recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he doesn’t think Space Jam 2 is likely to recapture the original’s magic.

According to Pytka, James doesn’t have the same unanimous superstar status that Jordan held in 1996 (the Cleveland Cavaliers forward is currently competing for “best player alive” status with Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and Kawhi Leonard, to name a few).

“Don’t do it. It’s doomed. Michael Jordan was the biggest star on the planet,” Pytka told THR. “When we did Space Jam, there was a perfect storm of players and ex-players available — Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing. They all had a persona that complemented the film. There are none around like that now.”

Sounds like the Space Jam 2 crew — headed up by Fast and the Furious veteran Justin Lin — might need a healthy dose of Michael’s Secret Stuff.