Ben Affleck explains why Michael Jordan wasn't on 'Air'

The Hollywood Reporter recently wrote about Affleck , the actor-director adds, “Jordan is too big. He exists on and around the story, but if you Embodying him, if you say, ‘Yeah, that’s Michael Jordan,’ we know it’s not, it’s true. It’s fake. I think if the audience takes all the thoughts and memories they have of him and what he has of them It’s even better if you bring that meaning to the film and project it into the film.”

In a press statement, Affleck further explained, “Michael Jordan So famous, I really feel that if we see an actor performing, it’s hard to get the audience to suspend disbelief, because in my opinion, no one can convince anyone that Michael Jordan is Michael Jordan. We think a more interesting one The way the story is told is for him to exist in the ether of the movie. Being talked about and not being seen is a bit similar to the experience of celebrities and sports stars in modern life because most people go through their lives without seeing or seeing or their favorite sports star or celebrity. So we only see Michael in clips and flashes. We never quite see him in person, because seeing him in person is grounding him in a way that the movie doesn’t want to do. ”

Affleck is also with THR Discussed what it was like to discuss the idea of ​​the film with Jordan. “I have to be very clear that this is not a Michael Jordan empowerment story,” he said. “If that’s the case, he’s not being properly compensated. If you’re going to do a Michael Jordan story, they should support the damn truck. It’s me saying, ‘Mike, if you don’t like this movie, I’m going to Won’t make this movie. I just won’t do it. I want to know what’s important to you. He knows it. He’s the one who told me [Nike exec] Howard White, he wasn’t in the original script, by K Ristak played. I said, ‘Any anecdotes about your father?’ and without elaborating, he actually talked about his mom, who wasn’t really in the script. That’s when I understood what the movie was about . Talking to him about his mom was so moving, and I realized, ‘Oh, this isn’t about Nike.’”

Affleck said it was from that conversation that he Expanding the role of Dolores Jordan (Viola Davis in the film) became the focus of the pursuit of Nike executives. “Probably the funniest thing about the movie to me is that, stepping into it, the main character isn’t who you think it is,” Affleck said in a statement. “While making this film, I realized that the fulcrum of the film was Viola Davis’ character Dolores Jordan. I wanted to do justice to her and Michael and respect who they were and what they meant to The lasting impact of our culture.”