Hard to believe these days, but there was a time when powerhouse Nike was at the bottom of the pack when it came to sporting goods. Its footwear division was in disarray. Hired to revive this sector, Sonny Vaccaro, a talent scout, one day noticed a young athlete who inspired him with an innovative approach consisting no longer in associating an athlete with a model of sneakers, but in designing a collection of sneakers around said athlete. The athlete in question? Michael Jordan. Camped in 1984, Air (VF) returns to a more important page of history than it seems. During a virtual conference bringing together among other stars Matt Damon, Viola Davis, Marlon Wayans and Ben Affleck, who is also directing the film, we deepened the question.
It all started with a screenplay by Alex Convery, which immediately pleased Ben Affleck and his old accomplice Matt Damon, co-producer of the film with him. It must be said that the Oscar-winning co-stars and co-writers of Good Will Hunting (The Fate of Will Hunting) are big basketball fans.
“The first step was to meet Michael Jordan, whom I knew a little from having met him a few times, specifies Ben Affleck. I wanted, out of respect for him, for his family, and for everything he represents, to have his approval and his opinion. »
It is specified, Air does not relate the journey of Michael Jordan, but rather the events, as experienced by Sonny Vaccaro, which led to his association with Nike. Nevertheless, the famous athlete is an integral part of the story.
“The film is not ‘the story of Michael Jordan’; we have not acquired the rights to adapt his life. The fact remains that the film evokes his person, mentions his name: it would have been unthinkable to go ahead without his consent. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have made the film. And I was really prepared for this eventuality by going to Michael’s. »
Mom watches over the grain
However, the legendary basketball player was not only favorable, but enthusiastic. Above all, he provided Ben Affleck with information that turned out to be fundamental.
“I told Michael that I wanted as much authenticity as possible, but to make a film of around 110 minutes, shortcuts were necessary. However, I wanted to avoid skipping anything that was essential in his eyes. So I asked him what he thought was essential. »
Rather than boasting about his own accomplishments, Michael Jordan listed and praised the people to appear in the film for playing key roles in his rise. None of these people was more important than his mother, Deloris Jordan.
“Michael told me that at the time he didn’t even want to go to Portland [rencontrer Nike], continues Ben Affleck. He said to me: “I was ready to sign a life association with a pair of shoes against a red Mercedes. My mother talked me out of it.” »
Ben Affleck explains that he was struck by the way Michael Jordan then began to talk about his mother.
“You have to understand: Michael is a very intimidating man. As far as I’m concerned, he’s the closest thing to a god here. And, in short, at that moment, I perceived this wonder, this respect, this adoration and this love when he spoke to me about his mother. »
Immediately, Ben Affleck understood that he was holding something very beautiful, very special, and now essential to the story. Which story already dealt with the revolutionary dimension of the contract of Michael Jordan, who obtained at the time of Nike, apart from the negotiated stamp, to receive a royalty on the sale of shoes associated with his image. That was unheard of. And that was Deloris Jordan’s idea: “Exceptional talent, exceptional understanding”, to paraphrase it in the film.
At the end of the interview, the director of Gone Baby Gone and D’Argo made the “mistake”, to use his expression, of asking Michael Jordan who could play his mother. “He said, ‘It has to be Viola Davis.’ »
In short, one of the most celebrated — and in demand — actresses around. Simple.
dream big
Fortunately for Ben Affleck, the main interested party liked the scenario that was submitted to her.
“It’s flattering to feel desired, but immediately afterwards, the impostor syndrome comes back, because you have to dive into the role,” says Viola Davis.
Describing herself as a very expressive person, the star was left with a contrast by studying the mother of the athlete.
“If you watch videos showing Deloris Jordan, you will see that she has this constancy, this “zenitude”; she is unfazed. Even angry, I’m sure she continues to look so unfazed. I wonder if she plays poker, this woman, this incredible woman. So, yes, it was flattering. And it was a challenge. But working with all these talented people, with Ben and with Matt… it’s been a joy. »
About Matt Damon, precisely, the latter reveals how much Ben Affleck and him, in their capacity as producers who are also actors, rely heavily on their play partners.
“Ben and I, and have been since Good Will Hunting, we rely a lot on the actresses and actors. During filming, we actors are “in the moment” more than anyone. For example, with Viola, Ben could ask her before filming a scene how she felt about it: that’s always how you get the best scenes. »
Unsurprisingly, those that Viola Davis shares with Matt Damon stand out. In the role of Sonny Vaccaro, the actor abandons his Jason Bourne physique and regains his belly as in the days of The Informant! (The informant!), by Steven Soderbergh.
” [Le rôle] was really well written. But you know, what was more important to us than “exactly who said what and when” was recreating, on the Nike side, that era that everyone concerned has talked about so much, an era when Nike was a loser, which now is hard to imagine. These people talk about it with such nostalgia: that’s what we wanted to recreate, this moment just before the signing of this incredible agreement, when they were almost marginalized and renegades. »
To conclude Marlon Wayans, who plays George Raveling, a former coach and highly respected commentator and one of those people who Michael Jordan said needed to be in the movie, Air is, much more than a sports film, an invitation to dream, and to dream big.
“We have all lived this moment: we have a dream, and someone comes to tell us that we cannot achieve it, that it is impossible. So to see this guy, Sonny Vaccaro, accomplishing that, getting Michael Jordan signed to Nike in a deal that transformed the industry, and transformed popular culture, is powerful. »
The statements collected have been edited for length and clarity. The film Air hits theaters April 5.