Having come together for the first time since Good Will Hunting just a few months ago for Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are once again teaming up for a movie depicting the early days of Nike, and arguably the most crucial turning point in the multi-billion-dollar brand’s entire run. Think Ford v Ferrari meets the NBA.
“The as-yet-untitled sports marketing film will tell the incredible story of how Sonny Vaccaro (portrayed by Matt Damon) – a maverick sneaker salesman – led a fledgling running shoe company called Nike in its pursuit of the most transformative athlete in the history of sports: Michael Jordan,” explains Matt Grobar of Deadline.
“Ben Affleck will portray Nike co-founder Phil Knight in the story surrounding Nike’s longshot effort to sign Jordan to its shoe company in the mid-80s, an endorsement that seemed impossible at the time but would become the most significant relationship between an athletic brand and an athlete and launched the global, multi-billion-dollar contemporary sneaker industry.”
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Nike’s partnership with Michael Jordan, of course, was what catapulted the company into global stardom, as well as what gifted His Airness himself the billionaire status he enjoys today (read more about history’s richest athlete endorsement deal here).
“Sonny’s relentless quest to sign Jordan to what was then the third-place shoe company takes him to Jordan’s parents, and in particular his powerful, dynamic mother, as well as to former coaches, advisors, friends, and those close to Michael,” adds Grobar.
“Jordan himself is a giant mythic figure hovering above the movie and never seen, while Sonny tries to reach him by gaining access to those close to him and around him.”
The screenplay was originally penned by Alex Covery, whose earlier version – titled Air Jordan – was actually named one of the best unproduced screenplays in the 2021 Black List. Mandalay Pictures brought the project to Skydrance Sports President Jon Weinbach, who then secured Vaccarro’s life rights, and eventually tapped Amazon Studio’s shoulder.
In addition to starring in the untitled Nike movie, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck will once again be co-writing a revised iteration of the screenplay a la Gus Van Sant’s Good Will Hunting and The Last Duel – with the latter also taking on the role of director. While Affleck has helmed such flicks as The Town, Argo, and Live By Night, currently, this will represent the sole occasion he directs his old buddy in Matty D.
Stay tuned for all the key details.
