Michael Jordan wanted film about Nike deal to credit mum, says director Ben Affleck

LOS ANGELES – If you lived in the 1980s, you might remember the runaway success of Nike’s Air Jordan sneakers.

But few know the story behind the 1985 launch of the shoes, which involved an unprecedented deal between Nike, then a struggling sportswear company, and basketball player Michael Jordan, a rookie at the time.

And when Ben Affleck approached Jordan for his blessing to make a movie about it, the sports legend told the Oscar-winning film-maker the real story was not about him, but unsung heroes such as his parents.

Opening in Singapore cinemas on Thursday, Air reunites American actors Affleck and Matt Damon, who won the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for their drama Good Will Hunting (1997).

The pair produce the film and Affleck directs, with Damon playing Sonny Vaccaro, the marketing executive who convinces Nike founder Phil Knight (Affleck) to sign Jordan (Damian Delano Young) as a spokesman.

At a Zoom press conference, Affleck, 50, says it was out of respect that he decided to run the movie idea past the now-retired American athlete, whom many view as the greatest basketball player of all time.

And it was Jordan, 60, who insisted Oscar-winning American actress Viola Davis play his mother, Deloris Jordan.

Affleck admits he “didn’t really understand the movie” until he discussed it with Jordan, but speaking with the basketball icon was intimidating.

“I’m not going to act like me and him are friends. I idolise the guy and, every now and again, I’ve had a chance to spend time with him,” says Affleck, who won a Best Picture Oscar for the political thriller Argo (2012), which he starred in and directed.

“But I had enough of an ‘in’ to say, ‘Hey, can I come see you and run this past you?’ And if he said, ‘Don’t do it’, I was going to not do it.”

And Affleck was fully prepared for Jordan to say no.

“However, he was very gracious. And I said, ‘I don’t want to violate anything that’s important or true to you, so tell me what those things are and I promise you they’ll be sacrosanct.’”

As it turns out, Jordan was more concerned about how others would be portrayed, and properly credited for their role in the Nike deal. He revealed it was his mother who urged him to negotiate with Nike.

Affleck was struck by the way Jordan spoke of her.

“This is a very intimidating, powerful man. Being around Michael Jordan is really like being on Olympus. You’re around somebody who is as close to a deity as you’re going to find.

“And yet, I saw an awe, a reverence, a respect and an adoration when he talked about his mother. It just shocked me. Shame on me for not assuming that was the case, but when I heard it, I realised right away that was the story.”

Affleck then offhandedly asked Jordan which actress he thought should play her, and Jordan immediately said Davis.

“That’s very typical of who this guy is. It has to be the best. So, I knew it was incumbent on us to create a role that was worthy of Viola, and we tried to do that,” he says.

Davis, 57, admits it was “flattering” to be courted for the role.

And it was a thrill to have her own husband, actor Julius Tennon, 69, star opposite her as Michael Jordan’s father, James R. Jordan Sr.

“But then, my next thought was, ‘Now, I have to step into the role.’ And if you watch videos of Deloris Jordan, she is a study in zen neutrality – the woman is very steady and quiet,” Davis says.

“So, to really develop that spirit was a challenge for me because I’m the woman who always has a chip on her shoulder,” says the star, who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for the period drama Fences (2016).

But it was “a joy to work with Matt and Ben and all these terrific actors”, she adds. The cast also includes Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans, Chris Messina and Chris Tucker.

“Me and Julius still talk about it to this day because it was one of the greatest experiences.”