'Space Jam' director wanted movie to end with MJ hitting walk-off HR

Prior to the release of LeBron James' "Space Jam" sequel, Joe Pytka, the original film's director, opened up about the 1996 cult classic and the ending that was cut from the movie.

Pytka told Derek Lawrence of Entertainment Weekly that the alternate ending they filmed featured Michael Jordan hitting a walk-off home run for his minor-league baseball team - a nod to the 1984 sports flick "The Natural," starring Robert Redford.

"When Michael comes back, I wrote a scene and actually ripped off 'The Natural,'" Pytka said. "It's a tight game, the stands are full, and Michael looks up and his son gives him a sign to widen his stance, a call back to something he said at the beginning.

"Then Michael hits a home run and trots around the bases like Robert Redford, with all these flashes popping. Instead of everything falling from the broken lights like in 'The Natural,' I had this special effect with everyone taking pictures with those little cheap cameras you could buy for a dollar."

The movie shows Jordan arriving at the baseball game and receiving a standing ovation, but it ends with him giving back the talent the Monstars stole from NBA players and unretiring from basketball.

Pytka is still bothered that the home-run ending wasn't used.

"There was an urgency for him to come back for the game but then he comes back and there's no game," he said. "It always pissed me off that they didn't put that in there. The ending should have been him hitting the home run.

"Maybe it was running too long or it was too expensive to do (the effect). Ivan Reitman, the producer, admitted to me they never knew how to end the film. It kind of meandered. Going back to Chicago to play basketball was bullshit. I don't want to trash the film because it was such a success but it would have added a slight dimension to the film. Maybe people thought it was too corny."

The sequel, titled "Space Jam: A New Legacy," is set to release in theaters and on HBO Max on July 16.