‘Air’, also known as ‘Air: Courting a Legend’ is a 2023 movie that is a biographical sports drama based on the story of how Nike courted an up-and-coming player Michael Jordan to partner with them. It describes how the collaboration changed the fortunes of both the company and the athlete. The movie has been produced by Amazon Studios and Skydance Sports. ‘Air’ is directed by Ben Affleck and script written by Alex Convery. The movie stars Affleck, Matt Damon, Viola Davis, Jason Bateman, Chris Tucker, Dan Bucatinsky, Marlon Wayans, Matthew Maher, and more.
Michael Jordan is a crucial part of the story of the movie. The movie focuses on how the Air Jordan shoe line was developed at Nike, which at the time revitalized a company that was struggling to make sales. Even though Jordan forms the crux of the story, it has been reported that the star basketball player won’t be making an appearance in the movie. Why isn’t Jordan in the movie and is he portrayed by someone else? Read on to find out more about the movie.
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Why Michael Jordan Isn’t In ‘The ‘Air’ Movie?
The movie ‘Air’ is based on the story of Sonny Vaccaro. Vaccaro, who is played by Matt Damon, is determined to sign a then-rookie basketball player Michael Jordan for a shoe line with Nike. At the time Nike was a struggling company. The partnership turned out to be groundbreaking for both parties involved. The movie stars A-list celebrities such as Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and Viola Davis. But one remarkable absence is that of the basketball star Jordan himself.
Ben Affleck talked about how the absence of Jordan in the movie and said, I did not ever plan on it.” He said, “because I never thought for a second—hey, Michael is so magnificent, so famous, the whole reason why he represents and means what he does in terms of greatness and excellence, is because he’s so, so enigmatic and majestic and identifiable immediately, by his carriage and demeanor and what we’ve seen him do physically.”
Affleck also elaborated how if any other actor would have played the role of Michael Jordan, it would seem fake and the audience wouldn’t enjoy it. He said, “The one sure way to ruin the movie and have the audience understand that the whole thing is a fraud is to point the camera at anybody that’s not Michael Jordan and say, ‘Hey, that’s Michael Jordan!‘” Affleck also added, “The only person who could play Michael Jordan, as I’ve said to him, is too old now to play Michael Jordan.” The basketball player is 60 years old now.
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Jordan Was Involved In The Making Of The Movie
Scenes in the movie ‘Air’ featuring Michael Jordan are reportedly filmed from the back of his head, so as to maintain authenticity. Even though Jordan isn’t acting in the movie, he has been very involved with the filming process for the movie. Jordan met with the director Affleck multiple times to help craft the script and make it as close as possible to real life.
Affleck mentioned how Jordan was providing input throughout the scripting and filming of the movie. The director said how Jordan included multiple characters who weren’t present in the first draft of the script. He said, “(Jordan) was the one who told me about (Nike executive) Howard White, who wasn’t in the original script.” He also revealed how important his mom’s role was in his life and urged for Davis’ casting for the movie.
Michael Jordan was undoubtedly one of the best basketball players of all time. He played in the NBA for 15 seasons and won the NBA championships six times with his team Chicago Bulls. Jordan has also been bestowed with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-president Barack Obama. His collaboration with Nike named Air Jordan was introduced in 1984 and remains popular to this date. The collaboration was groundbreaking for the industry and popularized collaborative ventures amongst companies and celebrities.
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