The "Best Picture" and "Best Actor" nominee recounts a time when Michael Jordan and Nike were underdogs.
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Air, one of 2023’s most highly anticipated films, was recently nominated for two major Golden Globe Awards, including Best Picture, Musical or Comedy, and us sneakerheads couldn’t be more excited to stream the film before the awards season begins. Directed by Ben Affleck, the 1980s-era movie chronicles the origin story of the game-changing collaboration between Nike and Michael Jordan, with a star-studded cast of familiar faces, including Affleck, Viola Davis, and Matt Damon, who also received a nod for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy.
If you didn’t catch the Nike film during its limited theatrical release, don’t worry, because Air is available to stream right now on Amazon Prime Video.
For Amazon Prime members, you’re already set to stream Air for free, as the Golden Globe-nominated film was produced by Amazon Studios. If you don’t have a Prime membership, you can still watch the Nike film for free when you sign up today for a 30-day free trial, which gives you plenty of time to watch Air several times over before the Golden Globe Awards take place. Plus, you can also purchase the Air movie on DVD on Amazon with a 50% off deal today, reducing the price to just $14.91.
An Amazon Prime membership will allow you to stream every movie or TV shoe on the platform whenever you want, on top of shopping perks like free, speedy shipping and sweet sales on Prime Day. Amazon also offers 50% discounts for Prime memberships for eligible students and SNAP/Medicaid recipients.
Air isn’t just a movie about one of the best basketball players of all time, nor about Nike courting him to sign on to the biggest sneaker deal in history. It’s bigger than that — it’s a dramatic story of rookies and underdogs shooting for the stars… and catching nothing but net. Footwear News, of course, was along for the ride, reporting on April 22, 1985 that Jordan’s initial deal with Nike, which ushered in his first signature Air Jordan 1, was worth $2.5 million and served as Nike’s “silver lining in its cloud,” amongst revenue drops and layoffs. Since 2020, the Jordan Brand has brought in over $1 billion for the Swoosh, catapulting Nike to be the athletic market’s most dominant brand, and giving it wings to produce the best basketball shoes of all time, along with running shoes, and workout shoes.
While Affleck, an avid Swoosh sporter, stars as Nike co-founder Phil Knight in the film, and Jason Bateman acts as Nike’s Vice President of Marketing Rob Strasser, Damon plays Nike executive Sonny Vaccaro. In 2020, Vaccaro himself told FN, “The key to Michael Jordan and Nike was [executives and designers] Rob Strasser, Peter Moore, and Phil Knight giving the OK to make him an icon on advertising… What created this phenomenon was his mystical playing of the game surrounded by a shoe. It was never just about Michael Jordan. It was always about Air Jordan, from the first shoe and the first commercial bouncing the ball. The iconic world [on the court] shifted to a marketing world.”
The sensational movie is a recounting of contemporary American pop culture history, with thrilling twists and impressive performances, as one should expect from a Golden Globes nominee. This means that you don’t have to be a Swoosh fanatic, sports expert, or film buff to enjoy the movie — though you may recognize your favorite Nike originals from your sneaker rotation in scenes of the film, including the Nike Blazer basketball classic (which rivaled Converse canvas shoes at the time), Nike Waffle track shoe, and Nike Air Pegasus 83 running shoe. Plus, everyone knows that the true movie critics judge from the couch, so it’s always fun to make some popcorn, throw on cozy slippers (or perhaps some Nike Jordan Slides?) and brush up on the nominated film before the winners are chosen on January 7, 2024. Nike shoes tend to win gold, anyway.
As Vaccaro, Damon says in the film, “This story is gonna make you want to fly.”
Olivia Cigliano is a Commerce Writer & Producer at Footwear News and WWD where she writes shopping content on the best-rated footwear, TikTok style trends, and more. Olivia received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from Emerson College, and her byline can be found in publications including Elite Daily and CR Fashion Book. In her free time, Cigliano loves to stream fashion and footwear films and documentaries on Amazon Prime Video, like Air. Learn more about us here.
