“Air” is a new film directed by Ben Affleck and it focuses on the legendary deal between NIKE and Michael Jordan.
Let’s dive into some trivia and facts about the film.
- Air is a 2023 American biographical sports drama film
- It is directed by Ben Affleck
- From a screenplay written by Alex Convery
- It is based on true events
- The film is about the origin of Air Jordan, a basketball shoeline, of which a Nike employee seeks to strike a business deal with rookie player Michael Jordan
- The film stars Matt Damon, Affleck, Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans, Chris Messina, Chris Tucker, and Viola Davis
- The project was announced in April 2022, with Affleck set to direct, as well as star and produce alongside Damon through their newly-formed production company Artists Equity
- Filming took place that summer
- With Affleck reuniting with his frequent collaborators, cinematographer Robert Richardson and editor William Goldenberg
- While Michael Jordan was not involved with the production, he did meet with Affleck and offered several suggestions, including the casting of Davis as his mother
- It was originally set to premiere on the streaming service Amazon Prime Video
- Distributor Amazon Studios opted to release the film theatrically first after positive test screenings
- Making it the first Amazon title since Late Night (2019) to be released in theaters without simultaneously premiering on Prime Video
- Air premiered at South by Southwest on March 18, 2023, and was theatrically released in the United States on April 5, 2023, by Amazon Studios
- The film received positive reviews from critics
- Particularly for Affleck’s direction, Convery’s screenplay, and the performances of the cast
- The screenplay was written by Alex Convery in 2021, appearing on that year’s Black List under the title Air Jordan
- It was reported in April 2022 that the script had been picked up at Amazon Studios
- With Ben Affleck and Matt Damon teaming to star in the film, while Affleck would direct
- Filming began in Los Angeles on June 6, 2022, with Jason Bateman, Viola Davis, Chris Tucker, Marlon Wayans and Chris Messina amongst several additions to the cast
- Robert Richardson served as cinematographer, using the Arri Alexa 35 camera to film with
- It wrapped up in July 2022
- The same month, Joel Gretsch, Gustaf Skarsgård and Jessica Green were announced to be among the cast
- The character of Michael Jordan is portrayed in the film, though his face is not seen and has limited dialogue
- Although not directly involved with the film, Jordan met with Affleck prior to the beginning of production and gave the project his blessing
- The casting of Davis to play his mother was his idea
- Jordan also requested that Howard White, vice president of Nike’s Jordan Brand and his personal friend, be included in the film
- This directly led to Affleck casting Tucker, with whom he had long wanted to work
- In the United States and Canada, Air was released alongside The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- It is projected to gross $16-18 million from 3,507 theaters in its five-day opening weekend
- It made $3.2 million on its first day
- And $2.4 million on its second
- On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 92% rating
- Based on 224 critics’ reviews
- With an average rating of 7.8/10
- The website’s consensus reads, “A fact-based drama that no one will dunk on, Air aims to dramatize events that changed the sports world forever — and hits almost nothing but net”
- Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 75 out of 100
- Based on 55 critics
- Indicating “generally favorable reviews”
- Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of “A” on an A+ to F scale
- While those polled by PostTrak gave it a 93% positive score
- With 83% saying they would definitely recommend it
