Pepe Le Pew cancelled from Space Jam 2; Will the French skunk be removed for good?

To continue the legacy of the live-action sports-comedy, Space Jam, Los Angeles Lakers player LeBron James has come on board with the Looney Tunes crew and is gearing up for a July 16 release. Looks like this comedy venture isn't spared from the raging cancel culture, though, as one of the integral characters Pepe Le Pew was announced to having been cancelled from the movie after a series of tweets attacked his character and what it promotes.

Pepe Le Pew cancelled from Space Jam 2

A number of old films and books are being removed from the rack as netizens discuss the effect of their tone-deafness and insensitivity today. Dr Seuss' 6 books were banned due to their stereotypical portrayal of races. A few scenes and episodes were also edited out of The Muppet Show after Disney acquired it due to the nuances of racism. To add to the list is Pepe Le Pew now, who is named as a problematic character by many.

The character came to light after a New York Times piece went viral that discussed how insensitive the pop culture was before. Pepe Le Pew was a cartoon French skunk known for his flirtatious behaviour that put him in trouble on many occasions. In the essay, his character was described as having had normalised rape culture. This is because he would often flirt and kiss other female characters on the show without their consent. His unwanted advances were a pit for jokes then but is far from it now since the world has become more aware and sensitive about such issues.

This discussion ultimately made it to Twitter after which the creators of Space Jam decided to edit his scenes out of the movie to appeal to the growing concern. According to Deadline, he was supposed to make an appearance in yet another unethical sequence where he would insist on kissing a female character and get slapped for it. Although the action of removing him was solely the movie creators' decision to make, the gravity of this issue suggests that the character might be discontinued for good. The following tweet gives a glimpse of the character and correctly explains the reason why so many people are encouraging his dismissal.