When Air was released in 2023, basketball fans warmly embraced Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s retelling of Michael Jordan’s historic Nike deal. While preparing for the film, Affleck sat down with Jordan to understand the man beyond the brand. Those conversations offered rare insight into his upbringing and the lasting influence of his father, James Jordan, a relationship that quietly shaped the legend behind Air Jordan.

Recently, Ben Affleck appeared on the All The Smoke podcast and shared stories about the making of Air, which also received several Golden Globe nominations. Affleck shared stories from the time he met Jordan, discussing his famous Nike deal, and inquired about his father, as he was looking for an actor to cast.

“My dad had the best personality of anybody in the world,” Michael Jordan said about his father, James Jordan, as per Ben Affleck, who revealed it in the podcast in the company of Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson.

“When he told me that, I remember it moved me. I was like this dude who is so proud of his son, and that’s what I loved about him. Because she was a bit more cynical. She kind of knew and maybe saw through some of the bullshit,” Affleck added. The actor-director felt that his mother, Deloris, was way more level-headed than Jordan, who is known to be extremely attached to his father.

James Jordan was a passionate basketball fan, and he fueled the fire inside Michael Jordan and built the base for His Airness to touch the levels that he did in the sport. James was a profound source of influence and support for Michael throughout his younger days and was seen at his games regularly.

His tragic passing in 1993 completely shattered MJ as he took a sabbatical from basketball and shifted his focus to baseball. His father’s demise is often seen as a catalyst in his career, as he later dedicated his fourth NBA Championship in 1996 with the Chicago Bulls to him, reflecting the bond and the love that they shared.

Why is Michael Jordan’s character missing in ‘Air’?

Even after two years post its release, fans still cannot understand the fact that why Ben Affleck chose not to have a character of Michael Jordan in a movie where he is the central figure. But after hearing his argument, one has to believe that it was probably the right call.

Before the production began. Ben Affleck called up Michael Jordan to discuss the nitty-gritty about the script at his office. Affleck revealed that he is not going to show Michael Jordan’s face in Air. “Mike, I’m not gonna put you in the movie,” Affleck recalled saying.

“… Because you’re such an icon, as soon as I show somebody and try to be like, ‘That’s Michael Jordan,’ you’re just gonna be like, ‘No, it isn’t.’ You can’t show a silhouette, you’re like no, it’s not him,” added Affleck. In the end, it was a wise call as most basketball fans are very touchy about their favorite players, and he dodged an unwanted reaction from the MJ fans by making this decision.

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While speaking about his parents, Michael Jordan made a demand to Affleck. He insisted him to cast Viola Davis as his mother. Davis also came on board when she got to know that she had MJ’s seal of approval. Interestingly, her husband, Julius Tennon, was cast as James Jordan in Air.

Overall, Air, which was made out of a $90m budget, opened to a great reception from audiences in the USA, Canada, and worldwide. It had a $90m lifetime collection while streaming giants Amazon Studios acquired the film for a whopping $130m.