Ben Affleck: “Michael Jordan is so iconic that no one can interpret him”

On Wednesday, Ben Affleck’s new film as director, aira story that explores the creation of the first Air Jordan sneaker that changed the business of sports forever thanks to Michael Jordan. Audiences will enjoy the presence of stars like Affleck himself, who takes on the role of Nike founder Phil Knight, his best friend and partner. Matt Damon as marketing guru Sonny Vaccaro and Viola Davis and her real-life husband Julius Tennon as Michael Jordan’s parents Deloris and James. However, Jordan himself is not present in the film, who is barely seen with his back to the camera. air recounts Vaccaro’s attempts to sign then-rookie Jordan to the struggling Nike company. Also surprising was Affleck’s decision to distribute the profit from production among the workers who collaborated on the film instead of owning them as producers.

-Why did you decide to tell this story about Michael Jordan’s Air shoes?

– This is a film that we wanted the audience to enjoy. It is made to inspire the public, to make them feel good. I don’t think it’s corny or small. It talks about human flaws, conflicts, struggles, but in the end you feel good and even though I’m not generally into this kind of cinema, I wanted to make something that would really inspire people. The same way Michael Jordan inspired the world. When you see excellence, geniuses like him, there is something about them that excites us and I thought I could do something like that. I wanted to do something difficult, something that would scare me. It was a pleasure to make this film because I really like the story.

– It is interesting that we never see Jordan on the screen.

-Michael Jordan is so iconic and so famous that we couldn’t try to portray someone different and pretend the public would identify with him without losing focus on the story. By definition, when you are so iconic and unique in the world, no one can interpret you. This movie is about one person until you find out who the real lead is and who this movie is really about. This is revealed in the middle of the film. The only one who could play Jordan would be Jordan himself, and now he is too old to play Michael Jordan.

– Does the film somehow reflect how we communicate with our idols?

– I never planned it that way, because I never even thought that Michael is known for his magnetism, he is for his behavior outside the field and what we have seen him do physically. Our relationship with these icons, with these idols, is not in our homes, in our lives, but in our fantasies.

– Did you expect the film to be released in cinemas?

-That. Because it’s important to me. I want people to see this movie in a theater and enjoy it in a group. Let them laugh, because it’s a funny movie and I know they will. I want to see the halls full of people again.

– There is an amazing cast in this movie. How could he get it?

– I was lucky. This cast consists of people I’ve dreamed of working with all my life, ever since I decided to be a director. I thought that one day I could work with a great actress like Viola Davis, who is the best actress in the world and the best I’ve ever worked with. Having her on my team was a dream come true. It’s the same with Jason Bateman, the actor with whom I’m working on this film for the fourth time and who fascinates me. Chris Messina was great in my last film and I knew he would be great in this one. And finally, nothing excites me more than working with my best long-time friend Matt Damon… It’s incredibly emotional. When I was offered the script, I talked to Matt and I said, “Hey, do you want to play this part? Working on this with me again? And he liked the idea. We were starting a new production company together and thought this was the perfect movie to launch the company. The themes in this film really evoke some of the ideas behind this new business we wanted to start. It was an adequate effort in that regard.

– Did you have a chance to talk with Michael Jordan?

– Yes, although it is not a story told from his point of view. This film narrates my own view of those events. If it’s about anything, it’s about what Michael Jordan means to the world of sports, to the world in general. The way he was and what he did transformed all sports, transformed sports marketing, transformed the way athletes were compensated and treated. This tape is not a hagiography, but I wanted to talk to him and I told him that if he did not agree, there would be no film. He was not interested in making a film about Jordan without his consent. I was fortunate to have very positive interactions with him. I wouldn’t have contributed anything if I didn’t have first-hand information about what happened in those negotiations. I tried to maintain Jordan’s extraordinary integrity in my own film story.