C@LAg said:

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one thing that amazes me is why does WB NOT make cartoon shorts to play before its feature films.

Have two. 1 new and one of the classics.

And show in front of every single WB film.

Yes, I know it comes down to show times and maximizing revenues, but make it an event as well.

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Been one of my favorite things for Disney and Pixar animated films. The Steamboat Willy redux in 3d is one of those chef kisses of animation in my mind.

Kudos to LeBron for remaking Ready Player One.

Space Jam: A New Legacy
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3554046/
July 16, 2021
In Theaters + HBO Max

Agreed. It basically looks like Ready Player One except with LeBron. Such a random angle to take.

I really like the idea of the WB Multiverse with the different "worlds" for each show and movie, but that's about it. LeBron and his kid seem like awful actors. I appreciate them trying to update the movie to modern times but goodness.

Hope the movie is better than the trailer. I'll be watching this regardless.

I saw Shazam for the first time recently and something about the very WB-specific references and name-drops gave me an allergic reaction. The DCEU references made obvious sense (though were also kind of funny b/c his brother ignored him like he was a loser for liking those things), but things like... not just a quick shot of Mortal Kombat (which famously had MK vs. DC), but stayed there for a while, then later someone said "Fatality" and someone else high-fived him for it. I'm sure there were other carefully selected WB properties mentioned but I can't remember off the top of my head.

Something about it all felt very try-hard from WB. And this movie is obviously taking that concept and cranking it up to 11. Most of the **** in this trailer I would never associate with WB, and they have nothing to do with each other, or aren't even remotely popular anymore.

Somehow the nostalgic blend of NBA and Looney Toons is now including... Game of Thrones and Clockwork Orange? Kids love those references, I'm sure.

I get that not everyone can match the instant Disney brand recognition of the classic Disney lineup, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel, but to try and promote it so hard in a movie plot is pretty weird and sad.

rhutton125 said:

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I get that not everyone can match the instant Disney brand recognition of the classic Disney lineup, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel, but to try and promote it so hard in a movie plot is pretty weird and sad.

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Disney bought that, and very recently. They didn't create Marvel or Star Wars (bought them in 2009 and 2012, respectively), and both were super popular on their own. Marvel has owned about 50% of the sold comic share since the 70's and 80's (with DC only at like 25-30% of the market), and Star Wars has had a rabid following since ANH in the 70's. They even bought Pixar in 2006.

I didn't take the WB "Worlds" as try hard, or even as promotion, it's just some Easter eggs and references for the parents stuck watching this with their kids. I grew up on Looney Tunes, Animaniacs (not pictured), the Batman movies and cartoons, and Scooby-Doo (not pictured), and that intrigued me more than 95% of the rest of the trailer.

And Shazam is awesome.

And happy Easter to you and your family

AgfromHOU said:

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rhutton125 said:

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I get that not everyone can match the instant Disney brand recognition of the classic Disney lineup, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel, but to try and promote it so hard in a movie plot is pretty weird and sad.

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Disney bought that, and very recently. They didn't create Marvel or Star Wars (bought them in 2009 and 2012, respectively), and both were super popular on their own. Marvel has owned about 50% of the sold comic share since the 70's and 80's (with DC only at like 25-30% of the market), and Star Wars has had a rabid following since ANH in the 70's. They even bought Pixar in 2006.

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Right. I think we're saying the same thing. The Disney ownership is so wide and monopolistic that it makes sense if a Marvel movie references a Star Wars character. The Venn diagram of who is interested in each has a lot of intersect.

The WB properties represented so far have no connection at all aside from being WB. From a Screenrant Easter egg article:

Quote:

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A number of characters from various Warner Bros. productions can be seen in the crowd scenes of Space Jam 2. King Kong, Pennywise from It, the Mysteries Inc. gang from Scooby-Doo, Cheetara from Thundercats, Khal Drogo and the Night King from Game of Thrones, one of the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz and one of the Agents from The Matrix can all be seen at some point during the trailer. Perhaps the oddest cameo of all is an appearance by Alex DeLarge and the rest of his droogs from A Clockwork Orange.

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I guess it's just weird for a Space Jam movie. Maybe if the Toons wanted to bring in help from the Animaniacs and the Batman cartoon and things of that ilk, Scooby Doo, other popular cartoons that one might associate with WB animation. But the Night King and Pennywise? Bizarre.

I guess it's just WB does Ready Player One or Wreck-It Ralph 2, neither of which I've seen. Curious, is all. Weird decision and/or marketing.

I don't really disagree with anything there. Maybe we are just used to Disney saying, "hey, look at what we have" all of the time, so when someone else does it it might seem weird or off.

I just think it's fun references and Easter eggs, and for all we know they're just in the background while the Looney Tunes take center stage.

I guess there's no real difference for me on this and the Lego Movies.

Lego Batman had Voldemort, Sauron, the wicked witch, etc. in it. I haven't seen the regular Lego movies, but I know Batman is in it, which makes no real sense.

https://www.ign.com/articles/the-space-jamming-of-ip-cameos-in-movies-is-getting-old

This article says some of the things I was *****ing about last weekend when the trailer dropped. For anyone interested.

Now that I think of it, I think it came across as less cynical that DC / LOTR toys were in Lego Movie is because the story was essentially being played out by an actual child, and that child would have cool pop culture Legos (just as his sister would have childish Duplo toys). It was essentially dumping out the whole toy box and fit into the wacky story.

Remains to be seen if that artistic integrity will be present for Space Jam 2.

Alright the MJ joke was pretty good.

The movie wasn't all that great. Maybe it's just me, but it was distracting when the toons were talking. I'm so used to the original voices, these newer voice actors were not good when they were trying to mimick the originals. It was so noticeable. So glad we watched it at home for free. That MJ joke was the best part of the movie.

Literally the only good part of that movie

Hint, the original voices were from one man, Mel Blanc!

SJ2 was not good. I gave up after about an hour. The premise makes zero sense. We the rest of the James family would know how to look in the server room is beyond me. The whole set up was to remind everyone 'hey we are WB and we own all these properties!' And to also suck off James who is not a good actor. I still don't know why he went animated for most of the movie and then back to real just for the game.