Help, I Can’t Stop Thinking About Lola Bunny in Themyscira

This week, we caught a first look at Lola Bunny in the upcoming Space Jam sequel, Space Jam: A New Legacy. Lola Bunny’s character redesign predictably sent the neckbeards of the internet into a fury over the “de-sexualization” of the childrens’ cartoon character. It’s a manufactured outrage that remains both gross and tiring, as well as deeply embarrassing for adult men who have nothing better to do than complain about a cartoon rabbit’s boobs.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, director Malcolm D. Lee (Girls Trip) discussed adapting the character for a modern audience. “Lola [Bunny] was very sexualized, like Betty Boop mixed with Jessica Rabbit … Lola was not politically correct…. This is a kids’ movie, why is she in a crop top? It just felt unnecessary, but at the same time there’s a long history of that in cartoons.”

Lee continued, “This is 2021. It’s important to reflect the authenticity of strong, capable female characters. She probably has the most human characteristics of the Tunes; she doesn’t have a thing like a carrot or a lisp or a stutter. So we reworked a lot of things, not only her look, like making sure she had an appropriate length on her shorts and was feminine without being objectified, but gave her a real voice. For us, it was, let’s ground her athletic prowess, her leadership skills, and make her as full a character as the others.”

But amidst the Lola Bunny discourse, we got a detail about the new film that is truly delightful. The sequel will find Lola off on her own adventures, spending time in Themyscira. Yes, the very same live-action Themyscira we’ve seen in the Wonder Woman films. “We wanted to meet her with the Amazons, trying to find greener pastures for herself,” says Lee, revealing that Lola’s reintroduction is set in the world of Wonder Woman, in an example of the new film’s use of the Warner Bros. film catalog.

And Themyscira won’t be the only Warner world we see in the film. The film’s plot follows LeBron James and his computer-obsessed son Dom (Cedric Joe) as they get sucked into the Warner 3000 entertainment “Server-verse” by a rogue A.I. named Al G Rhythm (Don Cheadle). The “Server-verse” opens the doorway to countless Warner Bros. properties, including all of DC Entertainment. This means we could be seeing tunes in the worlds of Mad Max, Casablanca, The Matrix, and more.

And yet, here I am, unable to stop thinking about Lola Bunny in Themyscira. Will she be training with Robin Wright’s General Antiope and the Amazons? Will she form Themyscira’s first basketball team? We already know that WNBA players Diana Taurasi and Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike be appearing in the film. Will they be playing themselves or Themysciran athletes … or both?

Honestly, if they want to do a whole film about Lola Bunny and the Themysciran league, I would watch it. Warner Bros., please make this happen.

Space Jam: A New Legacy premieres July 16 in theaters and on HBO Max.

(via Entertainment Weekly, featured image: Warner Bros.)

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Chelsea Steiner

Chelsea was born and raised in New Orleans, which explains her affinity for cheesy grits and Britney Spears. An pop culture journalist since 2012, her work has appeared on Autostraddle, AfterEllen, and more. Her beats include queer popular culture, film, television, republican clownery, and the unwavering belief that 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' is the greatest movie ever made. She currently resides in sunny Los Angeles, with her husband, 2 sons, and one poorly behaved rescue dog. She is a former roller derby girl and a black belt in Judo, so she is not to be trifled with. She loves the word “Jewess” and wishes more people used it to describe her.

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