The sneaker industry is huge, and there’s a legacy behind every brand, but not everyone knows how to market it. If Nike is famous for anything though, it’s its top-notch marketing. You don’t become one of the best athletic brands without work that resonates with people. However, it wasn’t always like that, and at some point, Nike’s basketball division… how do we put it? Well, it sucked, plain and simple. And that’s the era that the upcoming Air Movie will cover. Intriguing isn’t it? Especially with all the loaded tensions and tea related to that era. So, let’s check it out together!
Air Movie: Courting A Legend
Before we get into all the background stories we’re gonna discuss what the trailer showed us. You can watch it here in case you haven’t already. If you did, then you’re ready to break it down with us! First off, we gotta admit that the cast is very nice with Ben Affleck (also directing), Matt Damon, Jason Bateman, Viola Davis, and many more. Oh, and let’s not forget that Chris Tucker is making an appearance here, which we’re gonna take to mean that it’s gonna be a banger.
Anyway, the trailer shows us Nike in 1984, struggling with their basketball division. Then, Matt Damon, who plays Sonny Vaccaro, steps in with a great idea: to sign a kid called Michael Jordan. In the movie, we’re gonna see Vaccaro’s struggle to get support from higher-ups in the company. And we’re gonna see how the plan eventually worked out with the introduction of the Air Jordan line! Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like there’s gonna be an actual portrayal of 1984’s MJ (we’ll see the Jumpman though).
Where’s Nike in All of That?
You can’t produce a movie this big without having the approval of the subject, right? Especially when you have the actual logos, branding, and people from that company. That would be huge grounds for a huuuuge lawsuit. And you know, Nike is big on lawsuits with their latest being against Bape. You can read all about that here.
Reality Isn’t Always Hollywood Material
Judging from the trailer, Air movie feels like a 112 minutes-long ad for Nike, and we’re not even kidding. Moreover, Amazon is doing some solid marketing with a $7 million Super Bowl ad, and a release window on more than 3,000 screens. Now, while it’s nice to romanticize the story, the credit for signing Michael Jordan has always been a controversial topic, with many egos at stake.
In fact, even Phil Knight, Sonny Vaccaro, and Jordan himself don’t seem to agree on who deserves the credit. Although MJ’s point of view is definitely one of the heaviest, there’s still a lot of work that went behind the scenes. So maybe this movie will shed light on what went on! Worst case scenario, it’s gonna be an interesting and entertaining watch. In other words, if you’re a Nike or Jordan fan, you’ll wanna watch this movie when it drops on April 5, 2023.
Will the Air Movie Impact Sneaker Values?
Now we’re asking the real questions. If you’ve been around for a few years, you probably remember Netflix’s The Last Dance. That docuseries was a very cool coverage of the years in which Jordan & Co made history with the Bulls. But that series had a huge impact on the sneaker resale market, and lots of Js’ values shot up in a blink! So that’s a question worth asking before the movie drops. And who knows? Maybe it’s a sign for you to invest in sneakers now!
