EXCLUSIVE: Matt Damon Talks Bringing to Life ‘AIR’

Amazon Studios has released its new film, AIR to theaters today, April 5. To celebrate, we got the chance to hear from one of the stars of the film, Matt Damon.

During the chat, Damon talks the balancing the high priorities he and director Ben Affleck had for the film, getting Michael Jordan’s approval, and so much more. Check out what he had to say below.

You and Ben Affleck had very high priorities for this film. How did you go about balancing those priorities?

“Well, let’s see. It all started with the script, really, and that’s down to Alex [Covey]. But I just thought it was so great and I didn’t know the story. And then it was kind of step by step, I’d say, because the first step was getting the blessing of Michael Jordan to even, because before we got too excited, Ben said we should go see him. And my kids were up to something in New York then and I couldn’t go. So, Ben went to Florida to see Michael and Michael said, ‘No, it’s fine if you make the movie, it’s okay with me.’ But Ben said, well, what I really would love to know is what’s most important to you. And it was out of that meeting that he said, George Raveling, Howard White. And then he started to talk about his mom. And Ben called me afterwards and said it”.

What was that like, getting Michael Jordan’s approval?

“He’s an intimidating guy, and he’s an icon, and he’s all of these things, and he has all this meaning for all of us. But Ben said he had this look on his face when he spoke about his mom that I’d never seen before. So, we felt like we, okay, well now we know what the movie is. And he said, the only bad news is we have to get Viola Davis. If we don’t get Viola Davis, we can’t make the movie. So, that was when we started thinking about how to expand Deloris.

And that’s really one of the great things about this cast is that everybody is really a filmmaker. These two sitting next to me are A-list producers. Right. The Woman King, anybody? You know? Marlon [Wayans], Chris [Tucker], they’re writers, as well as actors. They’re filmmakers. And Jason Bateman is a director, producer. And we really lean on our actors and part of our process has always been, from Goodwill Hunting all the way till today it’s like, lean into what your actors bringing. And the actor always is in the moment and always knows. And we had these conversations with Viola. If it doesn’t feel right, what do you feel like here? Because that’s always the way to the best scene.”

But you didn’t just bringing the story to life, you also acted in the story as Sonny Vaccaro. How did you prepare for that role?

“A lot of it was just really there on the page with what Alex wrote. And Sonny, we were really trying to capture the spirit of these people in this time more than anything, not exactly who said what at exactly what moment. It was really about, and all of these people on the Nike side, independent of one another, have talked about this time with such nostalgia. And that’s what we were trying to create and remind people they were the underdog, which is such a weird way to think of Nike now. But before this kind of incredible deal, they really were these kind of renegades, kind of outsiders. And so, that was really what we were trying to get. The characters just all kind of had this incredible infectious energy, I thought, that was really kind of jumping off the page. The script was really quite something.

You got the chance to premiere the film at SXSW in Austin this past March, what was that like?

“It was incredible. I knew we were in good shape when Viola walked on screen and the crowd went crazy. I was like, ‘Oh, this is good. This is going to be good.’ Yeah, it was really cool. And it felt like, I’ve been to so many film festivals, and that one just felt like everyone was so excited. We were there, so excited for the movie. There was just a great energy in the room. It just was, I’ll never forget it. I’ll never forget it.”

As a producer, what are you hoping fans get from the film?

“It really is one of those kind of stories that comes along and you go, wow, this is really for everybody. And we used to call them, I guess, feel good movies. But that’s really what it is. You should leave the theater with a kick, like a skip in your step.”

In general, why do you think people should see this film?

“Well, if you don’t like Viola and me and Michael Jordan and Ben, you probably shouldn’t go. That would be the only, no, I really do think there’s something for everybody in this one. It’s not a strictly sports movie. I think for the sports aficionados, they’ll love the kind of behind the scenes, behind the curtain type of stuff that’s in here. But it really, I think, has surprised a lot of the people who weren’t expecting it. It sneaks up on you because of the role that Viola plays and how she takes over the movie. And it’s just, I do think there would be something for everybody in this one.”

*This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Photo credit: ANA CARBALLOSA © AMAZON CONTENT SERVICES LLC