Air Interview: Jason Bateman & Chris Messina on Working with Ben Affleck

In director and producer Ben Affleck’s business biopic, Air, we go back to Nike’s humble beginnings before all-star Michael Jordan alley-ooped them to notoriety. Before Nike was a top-tier sports brand, it was an underdog running shoe company looking for a break in the basketball space. In the mid-eighties, the company’s resident basketball expert and fan, Matt Damon’s Sonny Vaccaro, was enlisted by CEO, Phil Knight (Affleck), to bolster their basketball division. When things don’t go as hoped and the division risks being shuttered, Vaccaro makes one last-ditch effort; he places his bets on rookie player, Michael Jordan. In order to lock the deal that could change everything, he’ll have to give the pitch of his life to the young athlete along with Jordan’s mother, Deloris, played by Viola Davis. While Vaccaro has Nike marketing executive Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman) by his side, Jordan’s hot-headed agent, David Falk (Chris Messina), proves to be a challenging force to navigate. B