We have a perfectly good “White Men Can’t Jump” available for streaming right now on Fubo and Hulu and Roku and Vudu and there was a time not so long ago when you would have said, “Those aren’t even words.” But those are just a few of the streaming platforms where you can rent or buy Ron Shelton’s 1992 playground hoops favorite. It’s right there for the watching!
The OG “WMCJ” was a film very much of its time, and while the humor is somewhat dated, it still plays quite well because Shelton (“Bull Durham,” “Tin Cup”) is a master of the underdog sports comedy, and Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson made for such a good team—with an all-star assist from Rosie Perez as Harrelson’s “Jeopardy!”-loving girlfriend. Still, we’re getting a new “White Men Can’t Jump” on Hulu, because it’s apparently some sort of Hollywood Law that every pop culture touchstone movie or TV show from the 1980s or 1990s will be rebooted whether we want it or not—and while this is a serviceable, breezy, warm-hearted and occasionally amusing update, there’s nary a moment when it doesn’t feel … unnecessary.
