The only thing better than a sports movie, is a sports movie that is “based on a true story.” We get one on April 7th when the new movie AIR hits theaters. The movie reunites Ben Affleck an Matt Damon for the first time since “The Last Duel” in 2021. The duo have great chemistry on screen, having grown up together and been making movies together for almost 30 years.
AIR focuses on the birth of the Air Jordan brand. How Nike courted Michael Jordan away from their main competition (Adidas and Converse) and how close Nike was to actually shutting down the basketball division all together. Ben Affleck directs this movie and also plays Nike’s founder Phil Knight. Knight hired basketball savant Sonny Vaccaro to head up talent for Nike’s basketball division.
Before Michael Jordan, Nike had failed to truly carve out a foothold in the basketball shoe market. Vaccaro had pioneered the high school basketball camps, which had been very successful, but Nike had yet to see the fruits of Vaccaro’s labor.
But along with Vaccaro, a slew of Nike execs decided to court Michael Jordan and try and make him the face of Nike. Learn about the main cast of who plays who! Just scroll below!
