“Show me the money” was the memorable battle cry in Jerry Maguire, the 1996 movie about a sports agent who must “deliver” for his manic client.
07.04.2023 - 15:45 / variety.com
Brent Lang Executive Editor It’s-a blockbuster! “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” continued to rack up high scores at the box office as it heads into Easter weekend. The animated movie, a collaboration between Illumination, Nintendo and Universal, shows no signs of slowing down, earning a massive $26.5 million on Thursday. That brings its domestic haul to $58.2 million. At this rate, the mustachioed plumber should end his first five days on the big screen with more than $150 million in stateside winnings. Internationally, the movie has earned $62.5 million, pushing global ticket sales to $120.7 million. The week’s other major new release, Amazon Studios’s “Air,” a footwear tale detailing how Nike convinced Michael Jordan to become its most successful brand ambassador, earned $2.4 million on Thursday. That brings the sneaker story’s domestic total to just under $6 million. The film, which stars Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Chris Tucker and Viola Davis, is expected to earn $16 million in its first five days in theaters. That’s a mere blip compared to Mario, but a solid result considering the struggles that movies aimed at adults have faced. Affleck directs the film in addition to starring opposite his “Good Will Hunting” buddy Damon. “Air” cost $90 million to make, meaning that Amazon better sell a lot of paper towels to justify that spending.
“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” features the voices of Chris Pratt as Mario, Charlie Day as Luigi, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach and Jack Black as Bowser. Critics have been mixed on the film, but Variety’s chief film critic Owen Gleiberman praised “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” as “sheer animated fun,” writing, “second time’s the charm for Mario on film.” That’s a reference to the
“Show me the money” was the memorable battle cry in Jerry Maguire, the 1996 movie about a sports agent who must “deliver” for his manic client.
Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor “Air” music supervisor Andrea von Foerster received a music playlist from Ben Affleck titled 1984. “It was literally my childhood,” she says of the song collection that featured classic ’80s hits including “Africa” by Toto, “Candy Girl” by New Edition and “Jump” by Van Halen. The Affleck-helmed film, set in that same year, navigates Nike’s bid to land NBA player Michael Jordan and explores his groundbreaking sponsorship deal with the company. That playlist from the director and star of the film was the springboard for the 23 needle drops and 18 score cues “Air” features. In curating the film’s needle drops, Foerster wasn’t just using music to play against what was on screen — “the music was used as a showcase to tell a story,” she says.
Michael Jordan’s $15 million mansion in Illinois. Highland Park Police Department responded to the robbery while it was in the process after neighbors were called around 4:10 pm Tuesday, April 4th, according to Lake & McHenry County Scanner.The suspect is Raiden Hagedorn, and he was arrested and charged with two misdemeanors: criminal trespass to an occupied residence and two counts of criminal property damage.
according to IMDB’s Box Office Mojo. The film, which The Post called “lousy,” opened on Wednesday, ahead of the holiday weekend.
Owen Gleiberman Chief Film Critic There are a lot of reasons why “Air,” the sensational new movie starring Matt Damon and directed by Ben Affleck, is being consumed by audiences with eager pleasure. It’s the rare drama for adults these days that people actually want to see in a movie theater (I don’t mean that to sound negative; the film could jump-start a trend). And that’s no random triumph. “Air,” based on the true story of Nike, Michael Jordan and the man who brought them together, is full of juicy inside talk about money and sports and celebrity and what agents and marketing executives actually do. In that way, it has the qualities that defined both “Jerry Maguire” and “Moneyball.” The script is by Alex Convery, who has come out of nowhere (this is his first produced feature). I would personally like to give a high-five to any screenwriter who creates this kind of dialogue — bright and sharp and nimble, with a cutting worldliness, the kind of conversation that’s been an engine of great films for 100 years. People talking! Spewing what’s on their minds, or deftly concealing it, as we hang on every word. “Air” has come along at just the right moment to remind us that terrific actors delivering savory lines of dialogue is the most special effects that a movie needs.
J. Kim Murphy Before “Air” could get the greenlight, director Ben Affleck needed one last seal of approval. With months of development already complete, the director flew out to meet with Michael Jordan, seeking his blessing for the film, which explores the NBA star’s landmark 1984 sponsorship deal with Nike and the origin of the Air Jordan line. For screenwriter Alex Convery, this was the most stressful 24 hours of his career. “Either this was going to get made and it would be my first produced movie, or it’s all going to fall apart. Back to square one,” Convery recalls in a conversation with Variety. “To really do this responsibly, you need Michael to say yes. Ben said it in the first meeting, ‘We will not do the movie if Michael doesn’t want to do it.’”
"AIR," the new movie starring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, and directed by Affleck, reunites old friends, with a stamp of approval by Michael Jordan. It is no secret that Affleck and Damon have been friends for decades, first meeting when Damon was 10 and Affleck was 8. In previous interviews, both actors have expressed they each had a love for acting at an early age, which drew them to one another.
post-COVID theatrical gambit, “Air,” tells the mostly untold story of how Nike convinced a promising NBA rookie named Michael Jordan to sign with them over the market-dominating likes of Addidas and Converse. Directed by Ben Affleck and starring Matt Damon alongside a packed ensemble cast, the film also stars Viola Davis, Chris Tucker, Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans and Chris Messina and has debuted to mostly rapturous reviews and early-bird Oscar buzz.It’s also the feature screenwriting debut of 25-year-old Alex Convery.
Todd Gilchrist editor Michael Jordan and his signature sneakers have been a fixture of pop culture since 1984, when Sonny Vaccaro convinced the then-rookie (and more importantly, his shrewd mother, Deloris) to sign an industry-changing endorsement deal with sportswear brand Nike. “Air” dramatizes many of the finer points of these real-life events, with Matt Damon playing Vaccaro, Viola Davis as Deloris Jordan and Ben Affleck pulling double duty as director and co-star. But the new film operates less as a tribute to consumerism than as an origin story of one exceptional athlete — and the leather-and-rubber vessel that has become synonymous with his legacy. “I wasn’t all that interested in the business minutiae in the story,” Affleck tells Variety. “It’s really a fable, inspired by these characters and who they represent.”
Illumination/Nintendo/Universal’s Super Mario Bros Movie doesn’t need a mushroom to get bigger, it just organically is. Out of the gate today Wednesday, sans any Tuesday previews, the feature take of the classic game is looking at $26M, for what’s translating into a $86.2M 3-day, $127.5M Wednesday through Sunday haul. Interesting, even though its opening day was a Friday, Paramount/Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 had a $26.3M first day a year ago (that included Thursday previews). That film currently holds the 3-day record for a videogame feature adaptation with $72.1M, a benchmark which Super Mario Bros looks to squash.
The new movie AIR, which tells the story of how Nike signed Michael Jordan, is now in theaters and is sure to be a hit with audiences.
Amazon Studios’ robustly entertaining, real-life drama definitely has the makings of one. It’s far and away the most likable film released so far this year.There’s a starry cast led by Matt Damon, Viola Davis, Jason Bateman and Ben Affleck, who also directs his best movie since “Argo” 11 years ago. Running time: 112 minutes.
The new movie AIR is all about Nike signing Michael Jordan as a new spokesperson, but you never actually see his face in the film.
Air, the about Nike's signing of rookie Michael Jordan in 1984, take place in a dimly lit office, without other people present, and over the phone. And yet, in a film that includes heavyweights Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Viola Davis, Jason Bateman, and Chris Tucker, Messina stands out.
Naman Ramachandran eOne’s “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” debuted atop the U.K. and Ireland box office with £3.5 million ($4.4 million), per numbers released by Comscore. In its second weekend, Lionsgate’s “John Wick: Chapter 4” slid to second place with £2.5 million for a total of £10.1 million. Warner Bros.’ “Mummies” debuted in third place with £648,460. The studio’s “Shazam! Fury Of The Gods” and “Creed III” occupied fourth and fifth spots with £469,120 and £426,742 in their third and fifth weekends for respective totals of £4.8 million and £13.5 million.
While Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were writing “The Last Duel,” their first screenplay together since their 1997 breakthrough, “Good Will Hunting,” they noticed that something in their winding and usually separate careers had been missing.
“Family First: Winning the Parenting Game.”Michael Jordan could soar through the air — but he could also hem pants, dust and cook. Life skills were “a result of such parental expectations,” she wrote. The mother of five, now 81, ran a tight ship.
Air, whether because of (it's her husband Ben Affleck's film), that Viola Davis play his mom in the movie, or from the countless promos on TV, social media, and just about everywhere. And I'll be honest, when I first heard about the story—about the game-changing partnership between a then rookie Michael Jordan and Nike’s fledgling basketball division—I wasn't like, get me to the theater now.I love a good sports movie (The Natural, Field of Dreams, and Rocky among them), but growing up without a local NBA team or an obsession with Nike meant I wasn't totally sold. Still, I was interested enough that I made the trek to Amazon Studios for the press screening.
Charlie Hunnam make a lowkey arrival to the AIR premiere in Los Angeles on Tuesday night (March 27).
Love on and off the big screen! Viola Davis and her husband, Julius Tennon, walked the red carpet at the Regency Village Theatre on Monday for the L.A. premiere of their biographical drama, . In the film, the real-life husband and wife play Michael Jordan's parents, Deloris Jordan and James Jordan.