Air is a movie about Nike’s Michael Jordan shoe, Air Jordan. It is a biographical sports drama film directed by Ben Affleck and stars Matt Damon as Sonny Vaccaro, the Nike employee who struck a business deal with Michael Jordan.
The film is based on true events about the origin of Air Jordan and how a Nike shoe salesperson strikes a business deal with then-rookie player Michael Jordan. This deal eventually led to the launch of the first Air Jordan, which earned over $100 million in the first year.
While the film doesn’t have a post-credits scene, it does have kind of a mid-credits scene as it contains footage during the credits. This article explains the mid-credits scene in Air.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Air. Read at your own risk!
Air’s Closing Credits Scene Explained
The film contains footage during the closing credits. It’s a mixture of footage of the real Michael Jordan, as well as scenes telling us about the fate of the people portrayed in the film.
It shows Michael Jordan‘s “Be Like Mike” commercial from Nike and a portion of his Hall of Fame speech where he states that he loves his mother “to death”. As in the film, we see how Deloris Jordan plays a huge role in his life and in her son’s deal with Nike.
Furthermore, the closing credits revealed that the Air Jordan earned $126 million in the first year and that it became a reliable source of income for Michael Jordan considering that he earned a percentage of every Air Jordan sold, as part of the deal with Nike. It was also revealed that Jordan actually got the car he wanted (a red Mercedes Benz 380SL).
As we all know, Michael Jordan becomes one of the most successful athletes in history, winning six NBA championships with Chicago Bulls. His father, James Jordan, was tragically killed in 1993. Jordan’s mother, Deloris Jordan, established multiple charities and founded the James R. Jordan Foundation to help underprivileged children, particularly with basic educational needs.
The real shoe designer Peter Moore passed away before the release of Air, but he is credited for creating the most iconic images in the history of Nike, including the Jumpman silhouette logo.
As for sports agent David Falk, it can be recalled that in the near-end of the film, he told Sonny that he didn’t have any friends and that after he becomes successful, he’ll eat alone and then look for friends. In the closing credits, we actually see him eating alone after selling his company. Guess he could start looking for friends now.
As for Nike founder Phil Knight, he became one of the richest men in the world, with Forbes ranking him as the 17th richest person. He donated billions to each of his alma maters as well as to various charities.
And as for the star of the film, Sonny Vaccaro, the Nike deal with Michael Jordan wasn’t his only legacy. He became an advocate for athlete’s rights, particularly on student athletes getting compensated (the O'Bannon v. NCAA lawsuit).
So the end credits scene of Air shows the characters after the aftermath of the Air Jordan deal, with most of them becoming successful after.
Air is currently playing in theaters. It is set to be released on Amazon Prime Video soon.
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