In 1996’s Space Jam, Michael Jordan and the rest of the Tune Squad pulled off one of the greatest sports upsets when they managed to beat a Goon Squad that had more stolen talent than practically any other team in NBA history. However, when LeBron James’ animated teammates gear up for Space Jam: A New Legacy, they’ll be missing Pepe Le Pew’s vital 2-point contribution in the scoresheet.
Pepe Le Pew is a French striped skunk that dates back to 1945, a Looney Tunes relic by all accounts. Yet, like many other three-quarters of century-old things, Pepe’s antics haven’t aged necessarily well. Pepe’s running gag was always hitting on Penelope Pussycat, a black female cat who often found herself covered with an unfortunate white stain down her back that forced her to constantly reject the skunk’s unwanted and persistent advances towards her.
According to Deadline, a Space Jam: A New Legacy scene featuring Pepe Le Pew and actress Greice Santo (Jane the Virgin) was shot in 2019 but cut from the movie, resulting in the smelliest Looney Tune being outright dismissed in the sequel. The news comes on the back end of a recent New York Times column by Charles M. Blow, who argued that Pepe Le Pew “normalized rape culture,” though there are no indications that might suggest the two news stories are related. Instead, Le Pew’s absence is attributed to screenplay writer Terence Nace stepping away from directing duties in favor of Malcolm D. Lee.
As for the actual content of the deleted Space Jam 2 scene, it’s said to have been a vintage-style Casablanca sequence shot in black and white, where Pepe Lew Pew plays a bartender hitting on a woman and kissing her arm out of the blue. Pepe then gets what’s coming to him as the woman proceeds to humiliate him and slaps him; after which LeBron James and Bugs Bunny tell Pepe that he can’t touch other Tunes without their consent, in response to the skunk’s story that Penelope has a restraining order against him.
From the scene’s description, it would appear to be an attempt to modernize Space Jam: A New Legacy and better tune Pepe with more modern times by condemning the skunk’s storied behavior. At least that’s Santo’s opinion, as the actress -who has been a victim of sexual harassment- felt that cutting off the scene translates into a missed chance “to let younger girls and younger boys that Pepe’s behavior is unacceptable,” something she might know a thing or to about given her activism in such causes.
Outrage over Pepe Le Pew isn’t even that new, as Dave Chappelle managed to sneak the skunk into his routines back in the ’90s due to his ghastly behavior. So, perhaps this was a lost opportunity to embark Pepe on a path to redemption. Warner Bros. has yet to comment on the matter.
Space Jam: A New Legacy is scheduled for release in theaters and HBO Max on July 16, 2021.
Source: Deadline
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