On Saturday, former President Donald Trump posted a fundraising video to his Truth Social account that combined a monologue from Matt Damon’s character in the film Air, along with photos and videos of Trump.
In a statement Saturday, Artists Equity, the production company that produced Air and was co-founded by Damon and Ben Affleck, said that it did not approve of the use of the monologue for the Trump ad.
“We had no foreknowledge of, did not consent to and do not endorse or approve any footage or audio from Air being repurposed by the Trump campaign as a political advertisement or for any other use,” the statement said. “Specifically in terms of any & all rights available to us under U.S. copyright and intellectual property law, we hereby, expressly give notice that in the case of any use of material from Air by the Trump campaign where approval or consent is required, we do not grant such consent.”
Air, which was released earlier this year by Amazon Studios, tells the story of the Nike executives that pursued a sponsorship deal with Michael Jordan. Affleck directed the film, which stars Damon as Sonny Vaccaro, the key Nike executive in question.
The nearly two-and-a-half minute Trump campaign clip is entirely based on a critical monologue from the film.
“Money can buy you almost anything, but it can’t buy you immortality,” Damon’s voice says, as Trump walks from his helicopter toward the camera. The Trump campaign also used the spot for ask for donations from supporters.
The Trump campaign has abused Hollywood IP before. While he was president he used images, music and video from HBO’s Game of Thrones and The Dark Knight in tweets and other content. However, the Air spot is the first time he has taken an entire monologue from a film and repurposed it for a campaign ad.
