Ben Affleck gets career-best Rotten Tomatoes score for Air

Ben Affleck as Nike co-founder Phil Knight in Air

Ben Affleck’s latest directorial feature is a big hit with critics and audiences alike – scoring nearly perfect Rotten Tomatoes scores in both categories.

The film, which dives into the history behind Nike’s historic brand deal with NBA legend Michael Jordan, has a 98% Fresh rating among critics and a 99% Fresh rating among general audiences.

Affleck’s last directorial venture, 2016’s Live by Night, sits at a 34% critic score and 42% audience score. His last acting-only project, Deep Water, sits ands a 36% and 24% respectively.

Air, both directed and starring Affleck, the film follows the real-life story of Sonny Vaccaro (Damon), the sneaker salesman who signed Michael Jordan to his first-ever endorsement deal. Affleck plays Nike co-founder Phil Knight, with Jason Bateman playing longtime Nike executive Rob Strasser and Chris Tucker as Howard White, former college basketball player and Nike junior executive. Viola Davis plays Deloris Jordan, mother of the basketball legend.Air is set to hit select theaters in the United States on April 5 before it heads to Prime Video.

The cast also includes Marlon Wayans as George Raveling, who made history by being the first Black basketball coach in the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Pacific-10, and Chris Messina as David Falk, Michael’s first agent and also the man often credited with creating the name “Air Jordan.”

“Fundamentally, what I love about it is that it’s actually about the person that I feel guided him, and serves to represent women like her all over the world, particularly in the United States, who are in that position, and how important they are,” Affleck told the Inside Total Film podcast.

For more, check out our list of the most exciting upcoming movies in 2023 and beyond, or, skip straight to the good stuff with our list of movie release dates.