Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's production company, Artists Equity, has publicly denounced former President Donald Trump's use of audio from their film "Air" in a recent campaign advertisement. The film chronicles the groundbreaking partnership between Nike and basketball icon Michael Jordan.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Artists Equity expressed their disapproval, stating they were unaware of and did not consent to the use of any material from "Air" in Trump's political campaign. They emphasized their objection under U.S. copyright and intellectual property law, explicitly withholding consent for any use requiring approval.
A representative for Trump responded to Fox News Digital's request for comment with a "hang loose" emoji and shared a fundraising link.
The advertisement features audio of Damon as Sonny Vaccaro, the Nike executive who secured Jordan's endorsement deal. The dialogue used includes lines like, "Money can buy you almost anything. It can't buy you immortality, that you have to earn." This audio is juxtaposed with footage of Trump's political activities.
The ad continues with more dialogue from Damon's character, discussing the predictable rise and fall of public figures, interspersed with clips related to Trump's candidacy and subsequent legal challenges. The video concludes with Damon's character speaking about being remembered forever and the importance of fighting and never giving up, accompanied by chants of "USA."
The advertisement remained on Trump's social media platform, Truth Social, at the time of the original article's publication. "Air," released in April, has been a box office success, earning nearly $90 million.
