“It was important that I honor that”: Ben Affleck Reveals Michael Jordan’s One Demand That Nearly Shut Down ‘Air’, Tried Like Hell to Fulfil NBA Legend’s Wish After Entirely Skipping Him in the Movie
There are plenty of films about Michael Jordan’s life, but Ben Affleck hopes to talk about a simple shoe deal the Basketball legend did that changed the sporting world.
The Academy Award winner is releasing a film whose one-word title summarizes everything it’s about- . So obviously the biggest question is who is portraying the sports hero in the movie? The answer is no one. However, Jordan did request only one thing that Affleck thought he was crazy for asking.
In Air, portrays Phil Knight, Nike’s co-founder and chairman, while Matt Damon plays the man who originally recruited Jordan, Sonny Vaccaro. No actor is playing Jordan and we won’t see him onscreen too. But the Basketball royalty had only one request about one other main character. He wanted his mother to be played by EGOT status achiever Viola Davis.
But why Davis specifically? Because she resembles Jordan’s mother, Deloris Jordan a lot and also is a favorite of the sporting celeb. But Affleck wasn’t so sure he could bring someone of Davis’ stature onboard. However, ultimately he got her in the film and honored Jordan’s words. The acclaimed director said:
“I was like, ‘Mike, you just can’t get Viola Davis.’ He was like ‘nope.’ So I had to get her.
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