Jim Carrey Apparently Returning As The Mask In Space Jam 2

Somebody stop him!

That ever-churning rumor mill has cranked out a little nugget that may not make sense at first blush: that rubber-faced maniac Jim Carrey, hot off his amazing turn as Dr. Robotnik in Sonic the Hedgehog, will return to one of his most beloved roles for the upcoming Space Jam 2. We speak of none other than Stanley Ipkiss, AKA The Mask.

Now, we know what you're asking: "Looper, what in gol-darn, rootin'-tootin' tarnation does The Mask have to do with Space Jam?" Well, we've got a question for you: Why are you talking like Yosemite Sam? We've also got an answer to your question: because both properties are owned by Warner Bros., and apparently, the filmmakers behind the sequel to the 1996 live-action-animation mashup think it'll make a cool little surprise for fans. According to the rumor, the hero would be rendered completely using CGI, while Carrey would return to supply his voice; the character would appear as a referee in the big basketball game which is sure to be the highlight of the film's third act.

We feel obliged to warn you, however, that this rumor should be taken with a big, fat rock of salt. That's because it comes courtesy of We Got This Covered, which is not known far and wide (or near and narrow, for that matter) for its accurate reporting. If it's true, though, it would be pretty cool — and it makes us wonder what other Warner Bros. properties might make an appearance. Will Batman and the Joker be glimpsed munching popcorn together in the stands? Will a bunch of Lego people swab the court at halftime? Will Pennywise the Dancing Clown drag Bugs Bunny under the bleachers to his unspeakable doom? Only time will tell.

There's been a fair amount of speculation of late that The Mask, which was released in 1994 to a whopping $350 million worldwide gross, may be in line for the sequel or reboot treatment. If you're having a hard time picturing a 58-year old Jim Carrey coming back to reprise the zany role in another feature film, first, let us direct you once again to Sonic the Hedgehog. Carrey's performance in the recent video game adaptation was absolutely vintage, the kind of over-the-top, unbridled insanity that we haven't seen out of the actor for many, many years. The old boy's still got it, is what we're saying.

Second, the topic of revisiting The Mask has actually been broached with Carrey recently, and he didn't shoot the idea down outright. Speaking with ComicBook in January 2020, the funnyman said, "I don't think in terms of sequels and stuff like that... [but] The Mask I think, [for] myself, you know, it would depend on a filmmaker. It depends on a filmmaker, really. I don't want to do it just to do it. But I would only do it if it was some crazy visionary filmmaker. Sure."

There you have it, folks: Warner Bros. needs to get Taika Waititi on the horn right now, and offer him exactly one-half of all the money (with the other half going to Carrey) to write and direct The Mask Returns. Even the most highly-anticipated projects have their naysayers these days, but we think just about everyone could agree that this would be nothing short of ssssssmokin'.

Space Jam 2, starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Don Cheadle, and LeBron James, hits theaters on July 16, 2021.