Tony Hawk Almost Starred in ‘Space Jam’ Sequel Called ‘Skate Jam’

Pro skateboard legend Tony Hawk claims Warner Bros. almost made a Space Jam sequel starring him and the Looney Tunes characters called Skate Jam. Unfortunately, after the failure of Looney Tunes: Back in Action, the movie never happened.

“In 2003, I was requested to meet with Warner Brothers about doing a film tentatively titled ‘Skate Jam,’” Hawk tweeted over the weekend. “They were bringing back Looney Tunes with ‘Back In Action’ & then wanted to start on my project immediately. A week later Back In Action bombed & Skate Jam was shelved forever.”

Hawk included some art of himself skateboarding with the Tasmanian Devil and Marvin the Martian for a 2001 skateboard tour.

The revelation left fans stunned on Twitter, since many of them would love to see Hawk skate alongside Bugs Bunny on the big screen.

“The world was robbed,” one person wrote.

“THIS is the space jam 2 we needed,” added another.

“I’d take Skate Jam over Space Jam 2 with LeBron James,” another fan wrote.

The original Space Jam paired Michael Jordan with the Looney Tunes characters and was a big hit in 1996, grossing $230.4 million worldwide. However, a sequel never materialized at the time, and Warner Bros. later made Back in Action, pairing the characters with Brendan Fraser. The film was a critical and commercial bomb, making just $20.9 million in the U.S. and $68.5 million worldwide on a reported $80 million budget.

Warner Bros. is making a Space Jam sequel with LeBron James. In September 2018, Black Panther director Ryan Coogler signed on to produce the film, with Terence Nancy (Random Acts of Flyness) directing. James’ Spring Hill Entertainment also confirmed the project is in the works after posting a photo of a locker room with the names of Bugs Bunny, James, Nance and Coogler atop the lockers.

“The Space Jam collaboration is so much more than just me and the Looney Tunes getting together and doing this movie,” James told The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s so much bigger. I’d just love for kids to understand how empowered they can feel and how empowered they can be if they don’t just give up on their dreams. And I think Ryan did that for a lot of people.”

It is not clear who else will be featured in the new film, but the original included a long list of cameos from ’80s and ’90s basketball stars. Bill Murray and Wayne Knight also starred in the movie.

Meanwhile, Hawk recently used the “Skate Jam” name for his new mobile skating game.

Photo credit: Don Arnold/WireImage/Getty Images