The celebrated designer takes Boardroom’s Nick DePaula behind the scenes of the Nike LeBron 19’s creation
Space Jam: A New Legacy hit theaters and HBO Max on July 16, introducing a new generation of kids to the NBA/Looney Tunes franchise and giving a jolt of nostalgia to millennials (and surely several parents who took them to the original 1996 film) across the world.
The movie, which was directed by Malcolm D. Lee and stars Lakers superstar LeBron James, is notable for its cascade of famous cameos and grandiose visual presentation marrying live action, hand-drawn animation, and CGI.
But the breakout star of the whole operation might just be a shoe: The Nike LeBron 19, which made its official debut in the movie.
On this episode of Boardroom’s “The Sneaker Game,” Jason Petrie, who has designed signature Nike footwear for LeBron for over a decade, gives Nick DePaula the inside story on how the 19s came to life.
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As Petrie explained:
“We found out [about the movie] not far ahead of when everyone else found out. We’re gonna have to connect with the studio. Figure out how we work with this relationship. Which shoe is going to go in the movie? When’s the movie going to come out? We were literally working on the [Nike LeBron] 17 at the time.
“Technical-wise, problem-solving wise on the shoe, [LeBron] had talked to us on his annual business meeting. He talked about loving Max Air. And as the movie came along, we’re like, oh, snap, this whole narrative is going to take over.“
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