Air trailer: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon's film is exciting retelling of how Nike gambled on young Michael Jordan's talent

The trailer of Ben Affleck’s directorial Air was released on Thursday evening. The sports drama stars Matt Damon and Affleck himself and is inspired by true events. The story chronicles how sportswear brand Nike bet on the talent of then-unknown rookie basketball player Michael Jordan to create a new brand around him and how that decision paid off to be one of the most successful in sports endorsement history.

Air is the story of Nike’s Air Jordan brand, which came into being in 1984, months before Jordan had even played his first game in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Although Jordan would go on to become one of the greatest basketball players ever, Nike betting on him before he even began his professional career was seen as an unprecedented gamble back then.

The trailer opens with Damon’s character Sonny Vaccaro trying to find a new talent to build a shoe line around. He meets a hot prospective talent’s mother (Viola Davis) and begins on his journey to convince the rest of the Nike brand that his decision isn’t some crazy pipe dream. Affleck also appears as Nike co-founder Phil Knight. At the end of the trailer, it is revealed that the talent Vaccaro is chasing is a 21-year-old Michael Jordan.

Talking about the film and his association with old friend Matt Damon, Ben Affleck said, “Matt and I are very excited for audiences to see AIR and proud that it’s the first release from Artists Equity. The movie was an extraordinary experience where we had the honor of working with some of the best cast and crew in the business, all of whom brought passion, persistence, and creativity to a collective effort at recreating a remarkable and aspirational story.”

The film also stars Jason Bateman, Chris Messina, Matthew Maher, Marlon Wayans, Chris TuckerGustaf Skarsgård, and Julius Tennon. The film will release in India on Prime Video.