In "Air," comedian Chris Tucker moved right back into acting as if he had never taken a pause. It was his first film since 2016, in which he played Howard White, friend of Matt Damon's character Sonny Vaccaro.
Tucker, who was approached by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon about auditioning for the part, said he wasn't originally planned to be in the film. Tucker said he was given creative leeway and that it was a film that inspired him to keep acting.
The film, based on a true story, follows sports marketing executive Sonny Vaccaro and his pursuit to lead Nike into one of the greatest athlete partnerships in history: their deal to pair sportswear with legendary player Michael Jordan. The company's shoe division was struggling in 1984 with low sales, but the work of their marketing team was able to turn that around, and the rest is history.
Tucker spoke to Scripps News about the film and his new "The Legends Tour," in which he's making a return to stand-up comedy, covering a range of topics on the industry, his life, current events and work. He says he'll talk about "everything" in his show. Tucker said the comedy scene has a lot of dirty laundry being aired right now, and a lot of negativity and conflict, and he said he "hopes that stops, and we get back to being funny."
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Tucker, who grew up in the Atlanta area, attending school in Decatur, said he's happy to be back home, and enjoys his mother's cooking over any restaurant.
The city is known for its lemon pepper wings, but Tucker said he doesn't care much for any version of them (dry rub or wet.) It's all about home cooking for the comedian, who said not just anyone is invited over to his family's house either — so don't come knocking at his door.
Tucker is also a big Falcons fan, palling around with the team's new coach Raheem Morris and attending practices to see his friend wide receiver Mohamed Sanu play.
