Adam Sandler: Funny Guy (2020) - full transcript
Adam remains a consistent favorite among fans who are comforted that they will always have a good time. Get the inside story on this fascinating actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, husband, father, and forever FUNNY GUY.
(tense music)
- You know, I gotta do it.
I do whatever the hell I want.
- I know,
- That's what I'm all about,
man.
- You're Adam Sandler,
You are Adam Sandler.
- Who could say no to me?
No one can say no to you.
- Just my mama.
- [Man] Just your mama.
- And she does it a lot.
(upbeat jazz music)
- [Narrator] Producer, comedian, actor.
He's Hollywood's most renowned funnyman.
With a career stretching,
three decades so far,
and a successful production company,
Adam Sandler is a household name.
- See we're so down to earth
that he kind of just felt like
we had been friends for a long time.
- Best known for his
roles in "Happy Gilmore,"
"The Water Boy," and "Grown Ups,"
Adam Sandler has written
some of the most popular
comedy films to date.
- You just get jittery a couple
of days before it comes out.
But we like it. We like it.
Hopefully people connect with it
and that's why you do it.
- He makes me laugh, you know what I mean?
We just laugh. We laugh
together all the time.
We have a great relationship.
We just click, our families get together.
We have the same sensibility
and I'm always honored
to do stuff with him and
want to work with him.
So, when he thinks of me to
put me in any of his movies,
I'm thrilled and it's great.
- [Narrator] Despite fluctuating reviews,
his films are always
popular with audiences,
winning him the most
watched Netflix film in 2019
with "Murder Mystery."
- It's lucky, man, you never know.
Sometimes people won't leave me alone.
And then all of a sudden you're...
America or the whole world, is like,
"All right, get outta here,
we've seen you enough."
It's out of your control sometimes.
I try to hide out as much as I can.
- [Narrator] Sandler
has a large filmography
of family favorites,
feel good classics that have
you laughing throughout.
Having just extended a
production deal with Netflix.
Adam Sandler shows no signs of stopping.
And as long as his
audience are entertained,
the critics remarks are harmless.
- I was a kid. I was growing up.
I had an amazing mom,
I had an amazing dad,
brothers and sisters, my
brother and my two sisters.
All they ever did was make me
feel like I'm good at things.
And even when I was terrible
at things, they were like,
"You're so remarkable,
Adam, you're great."
Anything I did, I sang in the car,
"What a great singer, you're so funny."
Just they made me, instilled
me with confidence.
So much so that I thought I
could be a pro baseball player
until my father said, "You're too slow."
But that was when I was 11.
Then I had the just go, "All
right, maybe a comedian."
But I love my family very much.
And they made it a point,
the whole family was
always about our family.
My parents always made me feel
very like there was nothing else,
but me and my brother and two sisters.
So I.
- [Narrator] Adam Richard Sandler,
born on September 9th 1966
into a Jewish family.
Raised in Manchester, New Hampshire,
he quickly earned the
reputation as class clown
at his high school.
His brother Scott noticed his talent
and encouraged him to perform standup
at a comedy club in Boston.
Motivated to pursue a career in comedy.
He attended the Lee Strasbourg
Theater and Film Institute
in New York city after high school.
Sandler continued to chase
his dreams of show business,
and attended Tisch School of The Arts,
graduating in 1988,
with a degree in acting.
Adam Sandler's first television appearance
was in "The Cosby Show" in the late 1980s,
where he played the role of a
friend of the Huxtable family.
- Hey, Smitty, come here, man.
- Just a second, fellas,
I'll be right with you.
How about I, uh,
pick you up around seven o'clock?
- Great, I'll be waiting.
(audience laughs)
- Gents, when you see this,
you are going to want to
kiss me too, but don't.
Guess how we're getting to the prom?
Our very own limousine.
- Oh man, how'd you score that?
- [Narrator] Throughout this time,
he continued to perform
standup comedy shows.
Although he made his
first film debut in 1989
in the film "Going Overboard,"
his standup comedy was leading
him into the spotlight.
This caught the attention
of comedian Dennis Miller,
who recommended him to the
"Saturday Night Live" team.
This led to his employment
as a writer for "Saturday
Night Live" in 1990.
Soon after he started
making occasional appearances on the show
and became a permanent cast member.
Sandler was part of the
show for five years,
gaining a large amount of popularity
for his juvenile antics.
He performed several songs on the show,
including "The Thanksgiving
Song" and "The Hanukkah Song,"
which were loved by audiences.
♪ Elvis fans ♪
♪ Can't be wrong ♪
♪ Turkey, turkey dee ♪
♪ Turkey, turkey dap ♪
♪ I eat the turkey ♪
♪ And I take a nap ♪
(audience laughs)
♪ Thanksgiving is a special night ♪
♪ Jimmy Walker used to say "Dynamite" ♪
♪ That's right ♪
♪ Turkey with the gravy
and the cranberry ♪
♪ Can't believe the Mets
traded Daryl Strawberry ♪
♪ Turkey for you ♪
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] It was during the 1990s
that Adam Sandler began receiving
real recognition for his films.
He starred in the movie
"Coneheads" with friends
Chris Farley and David Spade in 1993,
and in "Airheads"
with Steve Buscemi and
Brendan Frazier in 1994.
His successful string of films
continued into the late 1990s
and he received much acclaim for his role
as an unsuccessful ice hockey player
who discovers a passion for golf
in the comedy film
"Happy Gilmore" in 1996.
- Well, it was an idea that Adam Sandler,
who's the star, had with
his partner, Tim Hurlihy.
They're both hockey fans,
they're both golf fans,
and thought it would be cool
to meld the two together,
the blue collar, fighting
mentality of hockey
with the upper-crust sort
of staid vision of golf,
and bring that to golf.
Punching,
hitting,
cheering.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] He followed it
up with other comedic roles,
such as his role in "The Wedding Singer"
and "The Water Boy," his
first hit film in 1998.
- I want you to visualize
all those people that
have been mean to you,
and then I want you to attack.
I want you to visualize and then attack.
Can you handle that?
- I try.
- He's gonna try
- What's the matter with you boy,
are you too st-stupid to do
what your coach tells you?
- No.
- No, what?
(screams)
(tackle thuds)
- [Narrator] In 1999, Sandler
starred in "Big Daddy,"
which was his highest
grossing film up until 2015.
- Just played the part the way
I thought I should play it.
It's not like I'm
changing my whole career.
It's just this one particular movie
I acted a different way.
Now what?
(milk bottle thuds)
- [Announcer] Now.
- You wear a diaper?
- No.
- [Announcer] Sonny Colfax is finding out.
- Could I have a night light?
- Night light?
- [Announcer] Once you adopt a kid.
(sign crackles)
- There you go, all right?
- You better give that kid back.
- I tried to give him back.
- [Announcer] You've got to keep him.
- Go back to sleep.
- I wet my bed.
- All right. Nice and dry.
No more wetness.
(baseball clunks)
- [Narrator] The fun, loving comedy
about a man pulling his life together
for the sake of a child
was popular with audiences,
but received mixed reviews.
The beginning of Sandler's
battle with the critics.
- We read a script that was a good movie,
but I didn't think I'd be too good at it.
And then we talked to the
president of the company,
Amy Pascal,
and she said that me and
my buddy could rewrite it
and tailor it more for
what I think I could do.
And we did it like that.
They laid down a nice script up top.
And then we kind of did
our own comedy with it.
- [Reporter] How exciting.
(smooth music)
- [Narrator] This role won
Sandler various awards,
including a Blockbuster
Entertainment Award for best actor,
and People's Choice Award
for favorite comedy motion picture.
This helped establish his
iconic comedic character role,
which has followed him
throughout his career
and attracted both
positive and negative views
from film analysts.
Adam Sandler also met
his now wife, Jackie,
on the set of "Big Daddy."
And she had a small
role playing a waitress.
Before the film's release,
the pair were already dating.
Their relationship continued
from strength to strength
and the pair eventually
tied the knot in 2003.
1999 also saw Adam Sandler set up
his own production company,
Happy Madison Productions,
off of the success of his previous roles.
Happy Madison Productions is based
in the Judy Garland Building
on the Sony Studios Lot, Culver City.
It also has company offices run
by Sandler's brother, Scott,
in their hometown of
Manchester, New Hampshire.
"Deuce Bigalow, Male Gigolo"
was the first film
produced by the company,
which was written by
Sandler's fellow coworker
at "Saturday Night Live" Rob Snyder.
Since then, happy Madison productions
has produced all of Sandler's
films, among others.
He is involved with all
aspects of the production,
including rewriting some scripts
to suit his favorite comedy flair.
Adam Sandler also includes
his family in his productions,
often making short appearances.
- You know, I got to do it,
I do whatever the hell I want.
- [Man] I know.
You're Adam Sandler.
- That's what I'm all about,
man
- You are Adam Sandler.
- Who could say no to me?
- You do what you want.
- No one can say no to you.
- Just my mama.
- Just your mama.
- And she does it a lot.
(gentle music)
- [Narrator] Although his earliest films
didn't receive favorable
critical attention,
in 2002 his starring role
in "Punch Drunk Love"
was a hit with audiences and
received positive reviews.
Granting him a Golden Globe nomination.
in 2004, Sandler starred
alongside Drew Barrymore
for the much loved romantic
comedy, "50 First Dates."
The film was originally
written as a drama,
but once Sandler was on board
he rewrote the script into a comedy,
adding in jokes and lighthearted
moments to the storyline.
Despite some negative articles,
the film received mostly positive reviews.
The early 2000s saw Sandler
appear in a variety of films,
all receiving mixed reviews from critics.
Many critics knock him for producing
essentially the same film
just with slightly different
characters and plot lines.
His style of jokes has
been called childish
and many brand him as lazy.
Knowing what hooks audiences in
and being unwilling to
change his style of films.
- [Reporter] What research
did you do for your role?
- Zero.
- [Reporter] Nothing?
- The Sandman would just
wake up, show up on the set.
They'd throw these tight pants on me.
I'd stumble out there drunk, throw a ball.
And then they put me back in my trailer.
- [Narrator] However,
harsh the critics may be,
Sandler's confidence
is not knocked by this.
- [Reporter] Does it matter
what the critics say?
Do you care about that?
- You know, it doesn't
matter that much to me.
I know what they're gonna say every movie.
They're gonna say they don't like it.
So it's... we'll be okay.
I believe in my stuff,
that's important to me.
And my friends and the
people I make the movies for.
I like 'em. That's the good news.
- [Narrator] His family life
also evolved in this time
with Sandler and his wife, Jackie
welcoming a daughter, Sadie, in 2006.
In 2008, Adam Sandler
produced and starred in
"You Don't Mess With The Zohan,"
a comedy about a soldier
who fakes his own death
to pursue his dreams
of becoming a hairstylist
in New York City.
- My guy is a soldier.
He's an Israeli soldier who's
been fighting for many years.
He has borderline super
powers as a soldier.
And he's just kinda tired of fighting
and wants peace in his life,
and has a secret dream
of wanting to cut hair.
And he's embarrassed to tell anybody that.
So anyways, they won't
let him out of the army
because they need him too much.
And he decides to fake his own death
and he goes over to America
and starts cutting hair.
And he wants to work with Paul Mitchell,
but he can't get a job there.
So he starts working at a crappy salon.
And the salon is owned
by a Palestinian girl.
And it's kind of a
"West Side Story" thing.
- They fall for each other,
but they know that they can't be together.
- Well, I did think that it was out there,
but I also kind of laughed and went,
"You'd be funny doing that."
And Adam had this idea
about eight years ago,
and I kept quietly cheerleading this like,
"You know what you gotta to do next?
Israeli hairdresser."
- [Interviewer] so this is
all your fault, basically?
- Maybe.
But then when it came down
time to really doing it,
and they wanted me to play
the Palestinian cab driver,
I had to work at this one.
I didn't really relax for a while.
'Cause it's not just getting the accent
and speaking, Aramaic.
I had to learn...
I mean I had makeup and everything,
and then just be comfortable in it.
So it did take some work,
that honestly took some work this time.
It was fun, but you know, Adam
got to go on set like that.
For me, it was like four hours.
He'd come visit me two hours into makeup.
And he'd go, "Okay, see
you in two hours." (laughs)
- I did have an Israeli guy
who used to cut my hair.
A really nice guy named Yuki.
And he used to talk,
I used to ask him questions
about the Israeli army.
And while he was
discussing the Israeli army
and machine guns and all this stuff,
he'd also be combing my hair
and fluffing it up and stuff.
So I just thought it was funny
to see a guy talk about macho things
and have to put conditioner on my head.
- [Narrator] Sandler
wrote the script in 2000,
but after the events of 9/11
the production team
decided to wait a while
before returning to the project.
- [Interviewer] 'Cause you do handle
incredibly sensitively
issues in this film.
- Yeah. So it came to that.
You know, I didn't think
that all the way through,
I called my friends up and said,
"What do you think of
an Israeli commando guy
becoming a hairstylist?"
And we all laughed.
And then we were writing
the movie, we're like,
"Oh man, we got to talk
about a lot of heavy stuff,"
but we try to make it
as funny as possible.
And also the message at
the end of the movie's
a pretty obvious thing, it
would be nice if we got along.
So, we knew eventually we
were getting to a nice message
just it was ugly to get there.
- [Interviewer] Some people would say,
it's not such a good idea to
handle such sensitive issues
in a comedy format.
- Right, right.
- [Interviewer] Presumably
you disagree. (giggles)
- I guess so.
Maybe if I wasn't in
it, I'd watch it and go,
"Hey, I hate these guys."
Because I'm in it,
I'm going to have to stick
up for it. (chuckles)
- Did you worry about offending people?
- Hmm. Yeah.
Yeah, I did, but I just
thought it was silly enough.
It's silly, it's approached in a silly way
and, yeah, there's very serious...
People who've lost family
to these situations,
there's no way they're
ever going to laugh at it.
Yeah, it was on my mind,
but I just wanted to
make light of a situation
maybe that can be a way
to at least talk about it.
- [Narrator] "You Don't
Mess With The Zohan"
got a pretty weak critical reception,
with reviews noting it
featured a lot of laughs,
but eventually the premise wears thin.
- [Interviewer] Have people
being positive to you about it?
- Yeah, but that's usually how it goes.
(interviewer laughs)
People walk up to me,
they're not going to jump right on
why they can't stand my movies.
Usually they're polite.
But I think it's getting,
if anyone has a problem with it,
that wasn't the intention of it.
The intention was to make you laugh.
And also just, I don't know,
see these Israelis and
Palestinians as people
and not just saying, "Bad guys, bad guys,"
people fighting and blah,
blah, blah, blah, blah.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] The film grossed $38 million
on its opening weekend
and Time magazine, and
The Chicago Sun Times
gave the film three out of four stars.
2008 also saw the release
of "Bedtime Stories,"
starring Adam Sandler in
his first real appearance
in a family oriented film.
His daughter Sadie made
her first onscreen debut
in this film, at the tender age of two.
- He gets to know his nephew
and niece a lot better.
The stories help him just,
become a child again.
I think he's a little bitter
because his dreams aren't coming true.
And then it brings back the old stories
that his dad used to tell
him, and that kind of thing.
- [Narrator] Adam Sandler's company,
Happy Madison Productions,
teamed up with Gunn Films
and Walt Disney to produce the film.
- It's a good time.
I like kids, they're usually
pretty fun to hang with.
They make me feel smarter.
I liked Russell Brand was
a good guy to hang with.
Keri Russell, a 10, great girl.
Nothing wrong with this movie.
- [Narrator] Despite receiving
generally negative reviews from critics,
it was a box office success
after earning $212.9 million,
against its $80 million budget.
- Yeah, I think it's a nice little escape.
It's a cool movie.
It's nice for families,
and there's enough jokes in
there to make people laugh.
And I like it a lot.
- Adam and Jackie Sandler also
welcomed their second child,
Sonny in 2008.
- I love my daddy.
- I love you too.
You guys are my buddies.
I love you more than
anything in the world.
All right, and I just want to say-
- I love my daddy.
- Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah.
All right, you did good.
- [Narrator] In 2010, Adam Sandler,
along with his close friends,
Kevin James, David Spade,
Chris Rock, and Rob Schneider
all starred in the family
comedy "Grown Ups."
- [Reporter] Now, you worked
with a cool group of friends,
people that work on "Saturday Night Live."
How important for you is it
to work with these people
on a regular basis?
- They're the only people
who actually like me,
that's why I stick around with 'em.
And I think they feel the same about me.
Not too many people like any of us.
- [Reporter] That's not true though.
- No, it's not, just we do okay.
- [Narrator] His daughter Sadie
also appeared in this film,
making it apparent that
Sandler wanted his children
to accompany him on set.
- [Interviewer] Are there
other children as well,
or is it just your guys?
- I was the only one
who was psychotic enough
to put my kids in the movie.
these guys would say,
"Why would I do that?"
and I was like (mumbles).
- [Chris] I said, "Why
would you put them in?"
he goes, "Because they're talented."
(Adam laughs)
- [Narrator] The film's plot tells a story
of five lifelong friends
who won their high school
basketball championship in 1978.
They reunite three decades
later for a 4th of July weekend,
after learning about the sudden death
of their basketball coach.
- I just wanted to make a
movie about old friends.
And I knew that we all were
pretty darn tight in real life,
that it made sense.
So it was about just catching up
and seeing that life
doesn't change that much.
- [Narrator] Despite receiving
generally unfavorable
reviews from critics,
it grossed $271 million
and led to a sequel,
"Grown Ups 2," in 2013.
After a mass amount of negative reviews
linked with his films,
Sandler began becoming choosy
about the press interviews he did,
and which reporters he would speak to,
leaving some worried he would
be disengaged with his fans.
At the beginning of 2011,
Adam Sandler was honored
with a Hollywood star
on the Walk of Fame for his career,
in which his films had grossed
more than $3 billion
worldwide at that time.
on February 1st 2011,
the star was unveiled
outside of the W Hotel.
Sandler was shocked, but
honored to receive the star
with his close friends,
Kevin James, and co-star
from "The water Boy,"
Henry Winkler.
- It is no mistake that
we are standing here
to celebrate Adam.
- Yes, sir.
- I met Adam on the phone the first time
when I called to say how happy I was
to be in the Hanukkah song.
(crowd laughs)
And the next time we met was
on the set of "The water Boy."
- Yes, sir.
(crowd cheers)
- But the fact of the matter is
that what you don't know is
that this man standing here
is not just a wonderful
son, an incredible husband,
a loving father, a producer,
a writer, and an actor,
and a loyal, loyal friend.
He is also dedicated to the
people that helped him get here,
his fans.
(crowd cheers)
We are here on Hollywood Boulevard.
We are here where history is made,
because this man, Adam Sandler,
has helped the history in recent times
of Hollywood Boulevard as we know it.
He is part of this history.
He has made history,
and today his star will be cemented
for history forever.
I am proud to know him.
And directly across, this is
(speaks in a foreign language),
which is a Yiddish word,
which means, meant to be.
I love this man.
And my star is directly
across the street from his.
(crowd cheers)
- Right on, Henry.
- Ladies and gentlemen,
we are here to celebrate
an unbelievably loving human being,
Adam Sandler.
(crowd cheers)
- I really, my friends who are here today,
I want to thank them so much.
They always back me up a hundred percent
and make sure I accomplish
whatever I set out to do.
It's been a nice, just a great ride.
I started off, I worked
hard as a comedian,
then I got on TV, then I got into movies,
and then I've really been getting to do...
Just so many people come out here
with the same dreams that I had
and somehow I'm getting to do them
and I really appreciate it.
And then... (laughs)
I love you.
You wanna say something?
Say "Dadda."
Okay, you'll do it later.
So anyways, I want to
thank everybody here.
Sony Pictures has helped me
throughout my whole career too,
has backed me up.
Thank you to Sony.
I think they even bought this
star for me, so thank you.
- I mean, let's hear it for the man
who employs half this town.
What do you say, huh?
(crowd cheers)
Really? What a, what a, what
a list of accomplishments.
- That was absolutely incredible, really.
- I gotta say, though,
a lot of those things you
kind of knew about Adam.
You knew all the movies
he's done and everything.
I'd like to share with you,
maybe a couple of things
you don't know about Adam,
that would be good.
Here's one, we not only
share a deep friendship
and a great working relationship,
we also share the same plastic surgeon.
Well, now people need to understand,
when your face is your fortune,
you do whatever it takes to stay on top.
Adam, I want to thank
you for introducing me
to Dr. Manboobian
and all the fine people over
at Beverly Hills Rejuvenation,
thank you, it's been a wonderful ride.
It's been a wonderful ride.
Here are some other tidbits about Adam
that you may not know.
His middle name is Richard.
I think a lot of people
actually knew that, right?
- No, I don't know.
- Did he say that?
Did he say that his
middle name is Richard?
He's got two beautiful
daughters, you knew that.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, well behaved.
- Oh, here's one.
Adam is a huge star, I mean, he is huge,
and he's on a first name
basis with people like Sting,
Bono,
and Oprah.
(crowd laughs)
I didn't know this.
He created the game show, "Tic Tac Dough."
He also created the five second rule
for when you drop food on the
floor, but can still eat it.
Thank you.
- Well, if my words fall short, know this,
there is no greater tribute I can pay you
than the fact that I am wearing slacks.
I don't wear slacks for anyone
except the people I love.
And court appearances.
(crowd laughs)
Adam, I love you, buddy.
- I love you.
(crowd cheers)
- This is a big deal.
I really feel honored.
I can't believe this happened in my life.
I did come out here when I was very young.
I was a kid, I was growing up.
I had an amazing mom.
I had an amazing dad,
brothers and sisters.
My brother and my two sisters.
All they ever did was make me
feel like I'm good at things.
And even when I was terrible
at things, they were like,
"You're so remarkable,
Adam, you're great."
Anything I did, I sang in the car,
"What a great singer. You're so funny."
Just, they instilled me with confidence.
So much so that I thought I
could be a pro baseball player
until my father said, "You're too slow."
But that was when I was 11.
Then I had to just go, "All
right, maybe a comedian."
But I love my family very much.
And they made it a point,
the whole family was
always about our family.
My parents always made me feel
very like there was nothing else,
but me and my brother and two sisters.
So I just wanted to thank my mom,
and my father, who's
watching down I'm sure.
He'd be very excited about this.
(crowd cheers)
I love you. I love you guys.
I love you, Val.
Love my sister at home, Liz, and Scott.
And all their kids, Tyler,
Jared, Victoria, Jillian.
They're all smart kids.
And, I gotta say,
one of the greatest things
that's ever happened to me,
coming out to Hollywood,
setting out to do what I'm doing,
I got to meet my wife.
You hear me, my wife?
I got to meet my wife,
who I love very much.
If I wasn't pursuing this career,
I wouldn't be out here,
I wouldn't have met her,
I wouldn't have had these great kids.
I wouldn't have felt as good as I feel
about my life every day.
I do love her very much.
I love that my kids are
not hearing a word of this.
(romantic music)
- [Narrator] 2011 had Adam Sandler
working with close
friend Jennifer Anniston
on a film called, "Just Go With It."
A romantic comedy which, once again,
couldn't win over critics,
but was adored by fans.
- I, I wear this fake wedding ring.
- You're a pig.
- Just tell her you're getting a divorce.
- It's over.
I'm gonna sign the papers
in a couple of days and-
- Okay, I just need to hear it from her.
- You wanna, w-what do you mean?
- I need to meet her.
- How 'bout if she texts
you, would that be good?
- I cannot believe I'm doing this.
- I want to create the illusion
I had a hot first wife,
not this.
- Okay, come on, let's go.
- Is that her?
- Hello, boring.
- Why you wearing that?
- I'm just, uh, playing the part.
- [Narrator] Also in 2011,
Sandler starred in "Jack and Jill,"
a comedy film in which he
played both starring roles
of Jack and his annoying
twin sister, Jill.
"Jack and Jill" is
considered by some critics
to be the worst film made by Adam Sandler.
However, once again,
audiences turned out to
see the movie in theaters,
earning it $149 million
against its $79 million budget.
(gentle music)
2012 saw Adam Sandler
spend some time off screen
when he voiced a character
for the animated film
"Hotel Transylvania."
Sandler also got his
youngest daughter, Sonny,
a voiceover role in the film.
- [Interviewer] No, you know,
you always sort of have the
same cast of characters,
whether it's in your films,
now in animated films,
what is it about these guys
that just makes you always
wanna work with them,
Continue to work with them?
- They're just very funny guys.
I just love being around 'em,
and we have a good time together.
- [Interviewer] And what was the best part
of working on this animated film?
I know you're not in front of the camera.
- Listen, yeah, we worked hard.
Me and my friends worked
with this guy, Genndy,
for about a year and a half or two.
It took a lot of our time,
but just knowing that my kids
were going to have a good time watching.
That's all that was exciting to me.
- [Interviewer] Now, you and Adam
are no stranger to working together.
What is it about the partnership
that continues to make you
guys wanna collaborate,
whether it's on film or
these animated projects?
- He makes me laugh, you know what I mean?
We just laugh.
We laugh together all the time.
We have a great relationship.
We just click, our families get together.
We have the same sensibility.
And I'm always honored
to do stuff with him,
and wanna work with him.
So, when he thinks of me to
put me in any of his movies,
I'm thrilled and it's great.
You know you're going to feel comfortable,
it's like seeing your family again
and working with your family.
So you can mess up, you can
have fun, you can try stuff.
- [Narrator] The children's
movie was popular enough
to earn two more sequels,
in 2015 and 2018,
in which Sandler reprised
his role as count Dracula.
(upbeat music)
The Sequel to Sandler's
own film, "Grown Ups"
premiered in 2013,
with critics calling it unnecessary.
However, at this point in his career,
Sandler was used to the negative
backlash towards his films
and was not phased by the reports.
Sandler's 2014 film "Blended"
saw his third collaboration
with actress Drew Barrymore.
The romantic comedy revolves
around Sandler and Barrymore
finding themselves together
at a holiday resort
after an unsuccessful blind date,
where the attraction between them grows,
and their kids, benefit from
the blooming relationship.
- Hello everybody.
- [Brendan] This is very cool, Mom.
What the fudge is he doing here?
- Is this a sick dream?
- Do I have a new mommy?
- Isn't this place fantastic? So romantic.
- We are not dating.
- My mom is frigging hot.
- Ew.
- No, not hot.
- That's just wrong.
- This is so pretty.
Wow.
- Oh.
We're out of gas!
- What?
- Start.
- [Narrator] Although the film
received mainly negative reviews,
the positive support from
fans earned the movie
mixed ratings across platforms
and made it a box office success.
Based on the amount of films
Happy Madison Productions has produced.
Adam Sandler was offered a
deal with Netflix in 2014
to write and produce films
for the streaming platform.
- [Journalist] I want to know,
why did you decide to have
this close relationship
with Netflix, and how
is working with them?
- They've been great to me.
And they've
just allowed me to be
free creatively.
And it was just really close
with Ted Sarandos
and the whole team.
It's an exciting place
to be right now for me,
the enthusiasm is gigantic.
- [Narrator] His first
Netflix release came in 2015,
the western comedy, "The Ridiculous Six."
Though the movie was
panned by the critics,
Netflix said that the movie had received
an impressive number of views
within the first 30 days of its release.
Sandler went on to
produce five more movies
for the streaming giant,
such as "The Do-Over" and "Sandy Wexler."
His film, "The Meyerowitz
Stories," released in 2017,
received positive reviews.
- We both had, and Ben,
and Elizabeth Marvel,
and everybody in the
movie has amazing dialog.
And Noah Baumbach,
his other movies are insane, I love 'em.
And then he sent this script,
and I think it was unanimous,
except for this guy,
we had to win him over.
We were all pretty away with
just the story and the words.
- From watching what
Ben and Noah have done,
I was excited no matter what,
because I loved those movies.
But the fact that he wrote this script,
and what all our characters did,
and what the story was.
That wasn't why I wanted
to work with them,
the fact that it ended up being this movie
was quite a bonus,
how great I thought that script was
and getting to see Noah shoot
and being a part of it.
- They're just such terrific actors.
I think in some ways,
because they both,
they gave over so strongly
to both their characters,
it creates a kind of intimacy
that you feel when you watch the movie.
I think it also doesn't hurt
that they've known each other a long time
and never really worked together.
They did a small thing in Happy Gilmore,
but this is their first movie
where they're really both
in it for the whole thing.
And I think there was something
exciting for them too.
And I think they saw it as a challenge
that they wanted to do great work.
- I would say that the
dad's... Your character,
- I'm whooping you.
- You are. You are, for sure.
- You're definitely getting in the way.
You're trying to ruin what I have.
Well, I'm just trying-
- Butting in.
- I mean, I do feel it's interesting,
both characters have their own
things that they need to...
I don't know, they have to grow,
they both have to grow, right?
And you have dedicated
yourself to your daughter,
but in a way, they're
things that you've sub...
- Yeah.
- What is it, sub?
- Scared of.
- Jugated, or something.
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
So I feel like, I mean,
you can make money,
it doesn't make you a success.
- Oh no.
- I think, being content in your life
or feeling good about
yourself as a person, or-
- Does anybody really feel that?
I got to get to that.
- This is getting so deep.
- Loved it.
I mean, me and Ben,
know each other forever,
and it's been a very long
time since we worked together.
This was great to see him everyday,
and do hard work with him.
And we both loved the script so much.
We didn't want to let Noah down,
but we both feel the same
about being with Hoffman.
It's an honor.
And it's something as a
kid you would not believe,
that one day you'd be
making movies with that guy
who is one of the best,
if not the best.
- I mean, Dustin,
I'd walk over broken glass
to work with any time,
'cause we're sort of joined at the hip
and this is our third time.
So that was heaven.
Adam and Ben were a joy to work with,
because they were slightly
out of their comfort zone.
So they were doing serious roles.
And I was an outsider,
and playing an outsider.
- [Narrator] The comedy drama was released
in select theaters and on
Netflix in October of that year.
And follows a group of
dysfunctional siblings
trying to live in the
shadow of their father.
- Well, the interesting thing I think
is that we all love each other very much
and we can't stand being with each other.
(reporter laughs)
- Yes, yes.
(reporter) - and that's real life.
- Yes.
- "It's what you do," is what
my sister in the movie says.
It's something like, "Dad's
so mean and blah, blah, blah.
And he never treats you right,
why are you here right now?"
And she's like, "It's what you do."
It's what you do as a kid,
what you do as a parent,
even when there's something
that's not clicking,
you're always trying to make it work.
- [Woman] Are you Harold
Meyerowitz's son, Matthew?"
- Yes.
- And this is Danny, also
Harold Meyerowitz's son.
- I didn't realize he had two sons.
- And a daughter
- Dad, it'll be okay here.
- It'll be nice to spend time with Dad.
You know, I didn't get a lot
of time with him growing up.
- Son of a bitch.
(cue cracks)
♪ Well, once we had an easy
ride and always felt the same ♪
- Dad, what the fuck?
- [Reporter] This film
has a real all-star cast.
It's not just you two, it's
Emma Thompson, it's Ben Stiller.
- Yes.
- [Reporter] That must have been
just so much fun to film, right?
- Oh yeah.
- Yes.
But we would have preferred
it if it was just us.
(Adam laughs)
- They just kept showing up.
And I was like, "Just put a camera on them
and let them do their thing."
- They hadn't worked in a long time.
(they laugh)
- It was just luck that this
guy wrote an amazing movie
and handed it to me and said,
"Would you like to be in it?"
That was the best part of it.
I read it and knew it was a great movie
and just didn't wanna let Noah down,
and worked hard,
and that's it.
- As we were saying,
we all prepared a lot and talked a lot,
and as a director,
in many ways,
part of your job is to see the actor
and see what they're
doing and help guide them.
But with the best actors there's
this other thing going on
that is out of your control,
in the best possible way,
because they're they're drawing
something from inside them
that's a mystery.
And it might even be a mystery
to them in some way too.
But Adam connected to something
very deeply in this guy,
it's something we haven't
even talked about that much,
but I would marvel throughout the shoot
at just how true and unacted it seemed.
It was behavior, and it was deep.
It was very moving to me.
- When we started the film, and
I was doing stuff with Adam.
And also there were things he
was doing with other people,
but I happen to be on the
set, and I observed it,
Noah uses the word deep.
And I think what that means is,
this is my personal feeling,
I don't think actors should
play parts unless they're in it.
Otherwise it looks like
they're performing a part.
"Oh, well so, and so is an
asshole, but I'm not an asshole,
so I'll just perform an asshole.
I'll just get a few people in my head
that I know are real
people that are assholes,
and I'll just do that."
I think we have the
asshole in us, all of us.
And it's up to us to enlarge on that.
And I thought what Adam was doing,
'cause I couldn't put it into words,
I agree with Noah,
there was something about him
that I had not seen before.
And I know him and I had
done another film with him.
And I went home and I
said to my wife, I said,
"I think Adam has hit a part of himself
in which he would be
the person that didn't make it."
And that's as close as
you can get to the bone.
And I thought that's what
Adam was doing, to hit that.
'Cause we can, we all can.
- [Narrator] Adam Sandler
was especially singled out
for praise by critics,
which was a breath of
fresh air for the actor,
considering his past negative reviews.
The film was shown at
the Cannes Film Festival,
but sparked controversy,
as it was a film made for online streaming
and not the big screen.
- [Reporter] But it caused
a bit of controversy
in Cannes, right?
The Netflix logo was booed
in one of the screenings.
Were you surprised by that?
- But it wasn't our film.
- It took a minute to get used to there.
It got some noise the first night.
And then the movie was such a
great movie, people relaxed.
And then ours came up and they
were a little calmer with it.
And we were glad they calmed down.
- We got a five minute standing ovation.
- Yeah
- Yes.
- [Reporter] It is a great film.
- You heard that? Did you hear that?
- Yes.
- I did hear
about the standing ovation afterwards.
- Say six minutes then,
it sounds a little...
- it was a six and a half
minute standing ovation.
- Felt good, standing that long.
It was good for the calves.
- [Narrator] In 2019,
Adam Sandler produced "Uncut
Gems" and "Murder Mystery"
for streaming giant Netflix.
- Do you know how that makes me feel?
- Never resurface anything.
- You think your life
is more important than mine?
- I don't know who said that.
(dramatic music)
- [Howard] I told you about
how things were gonna go.
You like the way things are going now?
- [Howard] That's my family.
Get the kids out of the house.
- You having a good time.
- Yes.
- This was like a 10 year project.
But the impetus originally,
the original impetus was inspired
by our dad's time working
in the diamond district.
And his stories that he would tell,
you'd always be on the edge of
your seat, listening to him.
Like, "Well, what did you do next?
What did you do then?
What do you mean, they poked your tire?
You knew they were following
you so you didn't pull over?"
He was like, "I couldn't pull over,
They were going to kill me."
So it's like the stories
kept you on the edge,
but there were also
comedic and ridiculous.
Like, "They did that?"
Then you start doing the
research in the diamond district
and there's this energy there,
in the diamond district,
where it's just the people
have gamble, on top of gamble,
on top of gamble.
And there's seven different
things happening at once.
And you're trying to
pay attention and all,
but it's just, it's alive.
You know what I mean?
- And the myth of this Howard character,
was something that it's kind of incredible
to see him exist now in this new universe.
- So I do think that we knew
that we wanted to do a thriller.
We knew that it was
going to be a thriller,
and I like the idea of
form following function.
So if you're going to tell a thriller,
it better be thrilling.
And how much more thrilling
could we have made this movie?
- Being Howard Ratner was a good feeling.
It was fun going through
what he went through
and diving in with him
and trying to be that guy.
And I loved it.
- Sandler such a unique person.
And it's great when you meet
a star and they are unique,
you know what I mean?
And he's unique because he's so himself,
you know what I mean?
And he's so grounded, and
he's such a good person.
But he's also, again, nuts,
in the greatest way possible,
you know what I mean?
His humor is amazingly
strange and I loved it.
We've loved it forever.
Forever, since we were little kids,
that was the first thing we learned from,
was through his humor.
And then of course the movies
are just these iconic things.
But I think that getting to
know him on a personal level
and see the work that he put into this.
There's people who prepare for roles
and there's people who
just enter the roles,
and he did both at the same time.
And that was amazing to see.
In the edit I would sit
there and just watch
the closeups to see all
these little micro decisions.
And now I watched the
movie and he's just Howard,
He's not Adam Sandler.
- Which is-
- he's just Howard.
- He said something where he's like,
'cause the way we would shoot the film
he didn't know what his closeup was.
So he would just be on
that level the whole time.
Yes, even in the wides.
Even when he wasn't on camera.
- [Interviewer] Just that level?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, he didn't know, he was just like,
"Well, what are we shooting now?"
I was just like, "Don't worry about it."
- [Narrator] "Murder Mystery"
saw Sandler reunite with Jennifer Anniston
for a comedy drama, which Netflix stated
was their most watched film of
2019 on their U.S. platform,
and had the biggest opening weekend
for a film on their platform.
- Twisted my arm, barely,
not even a little bit.
It's just, how do you say no to that?
He says "Please" And you say, yes.
- You're going to love the mystery.
I have to pay homage to the mystery.
It works, and it's, it's a fun watch.
You're going to love the locations,
because it's very
picturesque and beautiful.
You're going to love the adventure.
You're going to love the idea
of going to a distant place
and maybe getting wrapped
up in something crazy.
- [Narrator] The film revolves
around Sandler and Aniston,
a married couple that get
caught up in a murder mystery
on a billionaire's yacht.
- My name is Inspector
Laurent de la Croix.
I will now summon you for questioning.
- Why is that smoke ring so
good, how did he do that?
- Did you notice anything
out of the ordinary.
- [All Together] The Americans.
- But we didn't do this.
- [Nick] Someone's trying to frame us.
- We do things together.
So can we please just figure this out?
(gun fires)
It's just like "Death in The Library."
- What happens in "Death in The Library?"
- They died. It's why it's
called "Death in The Library."
(gun fires)
(Audrey screams)
You know, we were from
Brooklyn and fish out of water.
And they were all sort of
upper crusted, wealthy people
who all had a motive into
offing the man who was offed.
So it just was part of the story.
- It was all Jen saying, "We
have to do something together.
I can't be apart this long.
You're an amazing human.
I feel so sick to my stomach
when you're not near me."
So I said, "Let me just
make a movie with you,
so you can relax."
- On a personal level,
it was hard to believe that
I was directing Adam Sandler
after watching so many Adam Sandler movies
before I was a professional director.
So in that respect,
I had to pinch myself
pretty much every day,
but Sandler's so down to earth
that he just felt like we had
been friends for a long time.
There was a couple times
where I found myself
quoting his movies on set.
Not because he was there,
but just because it's
in my DNA as a person.
And he would hear me and I was like,
"Is it okay to... Can I do that?"
And he's like, "Yeah."
And he likes it.
So he's just a real person
that was awesome to work with.
- My two daughters
always pop in my movies.
- My wife, she's funny in the movie,
she's a flight attendant,
we had a nice couple of
scenes together, it was great.
- [Narrator] The film
received average reviews,
meaning Sandler didn't face
much negative backlash.
Adam Sandler also
created a comedy special,
sarcastically titled
100% fresh for Netflix.
This was to preempt the negative reviews.
However, it was favored by
critics and highly recommended.
Due to the popularity of the six films
Happy Madison Productions
had made for Netflix,
Adam Sandler signed a further deal
with the streaming
platform in January, 2020,
confirming he would produce
a further four films for the company.
- You signed a multi-movie
deal with Netflix.
You must think it's the future of cinema.
- That, and the fact that they
liked me so much feels nice.
It's a combination.
I think they've been great to me.
And they also say I'm
wonderful, and that feels nice.
- [Narrator] Despite the critical backlash
he has faced throughout his career so far,
Adam Sandler has always had
a solid fan base behind him
supporting all his productions
and pushing his career further.
- [Reporter] Obviously your
films are, as you said,
proving hugely popular still on Netflix.
Does it matter what the critics say?
Do you care about that?
- It doesn't matter that much to me.
I know what they're gonna say every movie,
they're going to say they don't like it.
We'll be okay.
I believe in my stuff,
that's important to me.
and my friends and the
people I make the movies for,
I like 'em.
That's the good news.
- [Reporter] Do you think in the past,
critics have been too harsh on his films?
- I don't care about critics.
You know what, John Cleese
said said the best thing to me,
since you're from the UK,
John Cleese, my real hero,
the funniest big man, who ever lived.
funniest guy, and a great writer,
but Cleese said the best
thing about critics.
He said, "Critics,
don't even ignore them."
I'll take it to my grave. Thank you.
Ah, who cares?
I'll take criticism
from somebody who does the
same thing we're doing,
trying to write, produce
direct and make movies
and star in movies and deal with all this.
Let's see them do it.
And then I'll listen to
what they have to say.
- Working with Adam
Sandler was definitely,
probably, one of the best experiences
I've ever had in my career.
And I got to learn so much from him.
Mostly working side by side with him,
watching him be the
director and the actor,
and pull it all together.
So it was a great learning experience too.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] Most of his fans
fell in love with the actor
from his early career,
starring and "Happy Gilmore"
and "The Water Boy."
Even those who weren't born
at the time of the release
notably mention these titles,
proving his films are now
considered comedy classics.
Sandler's filmography serves
as a sort of comfort food for fans.
Most explaining that his films
are really easy to watch,
and the simplicity inspires laughs.
For his fans, Adam Sandler
has a relatable appeal
an, "I'll always be me" nobility,
which keeps his audiences
coming back for more.
Although critics might not like
the similarities in the
characters he plays,
his viewers seem to love the similarities
in each character he plays
in every different film he stars in.
Making movies for Netflix
makes his productions
more accessible to a wider audience.
And will definitely keep him popular.
(gentle music)
Despite a career filled
with fluctuating reviews from critics
and films that didn't quite
meet their box office budgets,
Adam Sandler has managed
to survive the storm
and come out on top,
proving his title is a fan
favorite is here to stay.
- [Interviewer] What's the best part
about being successful and/or famous?
- I don't know. I don't know.
I don't think about that.
I'm just happy to be working.
- [Narrator] Everyone knows
of at least one Happy Madison film
and the actor is a household name
who keeps bringing laughs
to our living rooms.
- On set he's so nice, and so welcoming,
it makes you feel very comfortable.
There's no room for you to be nervous.
Because he's just making jokes,
or trying to think of other
ways to make the scene work.
- And I feel like we've
got a lot in common.
He's nicer than me.
- No, just we have a thing that,
I think we share some
sort of mutual subset of-
- Loving of our parents too.
- Yes.
- [Narrator] Adam Sandler is
at the height of his career,
and with a new Netflix deal
and filmography that just keeps growing,
audiences are awaiting the arrival
of his next lovable character.
(upbeat music)
- You know, I gotta do it.
I do whatever the hell I want.
- I know,
- That's what I'm all about,
man.
- You're Adam Sandler,
You are Adam Sandler.
- Who could say no to me?
No one can say no to you.
- Just my mama.
- [Man] Just your mama.
- And she does it a lot.
(upbeat jazz music)
- [Narrator] Producer, comedian, actor.
He's Hollywood's most renowned funnyman.
With a career stretching,
three decades so far,
and a successful production company,
Adam Sandler is a household name.
- See we're so down to earth
that he kind of just felt like
we had been friends for a long time.
- Best known for his
roles in "Happy Gilmore,"
"The Water Boy," and "Grown Ups,"
Adam Sandler has written
some of the most popular
comedy films to date.
- You just get jittery a couple
of days before it comes out.
But we like it. We like it.
Hopefully people connect with it
and that's why you do it.
- He makes me laugh, you know what I mean?
We just laugh. We laugh
together all the time.
We have a great relationship.
We just click, our families get together.
We have the same sensibility
and I'm always honored
to do stuff with him and
want to work with him.
So, when he thinks of me to
put me in any of his movies,
I'm thrilled and it's great.
- [Narrator] Despite fluctuating reviews,
his films are always
popular with audiences,
winning him the most
watched Netflix film in 2019
with "Murder Mystery."
- It's lucky, man, you never know.
Sometimes people won't leave me alone.
And then all of a sudden you're...
America or the whole world, is like,
"All right, get outta here,
we've seen you enough."
It's out of your control sometimes.
I try to hide out as much as I can.
- [Narrator] Sandler
has a large filmography
of family favorites,
feel good classics that have
you laughing throughout.
Having just extended a
production deal with Netflix.
Adam Sandler shows no signs of stopping.
And as long as his
audience are entertained,
the critics remarks are harmless.
- I was a kid. I was growing up.
I had an amazing mom,
I had an amazing dad,
brothers and sisters, my
brother and my two sisters.
All they ever did was make me
feel like I'm good at things.
And even when I was terrible
at things, they were like,
"You're so remarkable,
Adam, you're great."
Anything I did, I sang in the car,
"What a great singer, you're so funny."
Just they made me, instilled
me with confidence.
So much so that I thought I
could be a pro baseball player
until my father said, "You're too slow."
But that was when I was 11.
Then I had the just go, "All
right, maybe a comedian."
But I love my family very much.
And they made it a point,
the whole family was
always about our family.
My parents always made me feel
very like there was nothing else,
but me and my brother and two sisters.
So I.
- [Narrator] Adam Richard Sandler,
born on September 9th 1966
into a Jewish family.
Raised in Manchester, New Hampshire,
he quickly earned the
reputation as class clown
at his high school.
His brother Scott noticed his talent
and encouraged him to perform standup
at a comedy club in Boston.
Motivated to pursue a career in comedy.
He attended the Lee Strasbourg
Theater and Film Institute
in New York city after high school.
Sandler continued to chase
his dreams of show business,
and attended Tisch School of The Arts,
graduating in 1988,
with a degree in acting.
Adam Sandler's first television appearance
was in "The Cosby Show" in the late 1980s,
where he played the role of a
friend of the Huxtable family.
- Hey, Smitty, come here, man.
- Just a second, fellas,
I'll be right with you.
How about I, uh,
pick you up around seven o'clock?
- Great, I'll be waiting.
(audience laughs)
- Gents, when you see this,
you are going to want to
kiss me too, but don't.
Guess how we're getting to the prom?
Our very own limousine.
- Oh man, how'd you score that?
- [Narrator] Throughout this time,
he continued to perform
standup comedy shows.
Although he made his
first film debut in 1989
in the film "Going Overboard,"
his standup comedy was leading
him into the spotlight.
This caught the attention
of comedian Dennis Miller,
who recommended him to the
"Saturday Night Live" team.
This led to his employment
as a writer for "Saturday
Night Live" in 1990.
Soon after he started
making occasional appearances on the show
and became a permanent cast member.
Sandler was part of the
show for five years,
gaining a large amount of popularity
for his juvenile antics.
He performed several songs on the show,
including "The Thanksgiving
Song" and "The Hanukkah Song,"
which were loved by audiences.
♪ Elvis fans ♪
♪ Can't be wrong ♪
♪ Turkey, turkey dee ♪
♪ Turkey, turkey dap ♪
♪ I eat the turkey ♪
♪ And I take a nap ♪
(audience laughs)
♪ Thanksgiving is a special night ♪
♪ Jimmy Walker used to say "Dynamite" ♪
♪ That's right ♪
♪ Turkey with the gravy
and the cranberry ♪
♪ Can't believe the Mets
traded Daryl Strawberry ♪
♪ Turkey for you ♪
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] It was during the 1990s
that Adam Sandler began receiving
real recognition for his films.
He starred in the movie
"Coneheads" with friends
Chris Farley and David Spade in 1993,
and in "Airheads"
with Steve Buscemi and
Brendan Frazier in 1994.
His successful string of films
continued into the late 1990s
and he received much acclaim for his role
as an unsuccessful ice hockey player
who discovers a passion for golf
in the comedy film
"Happy Gilmore" in 1996.
- Well, it was an idea that Adam Sandler,
who's the star, had with
his partner, Tim Hurlihy.
They're both hockey fans,
they're both golf fans,
and thought it would be cool
to meld the two together,
the blue collar, fighting
mentality of hockey
with the upper-crust sort
of staid vision of golf,
and bring that to golf.
Punching,
hitting,
cheering.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] He followed it
up with other comedic roles,
such as his role in "The Wedding Singer"
and "The Water Boy," his
first hit film in 1998.
- I want you to visualize
all those people that
have been mean to you,
and then I want you to attack.
I want you to visualize and then attack.
Can you handle that?
- I try.
- He's gonna try
- What's the matter with you boy,
are you too st-stupid to do
what your coach tells you?
- No.
- No, what?
(screams)
(tackle thuds)
- [Narrator] In 1999, Sandler
starred in "Big Daddy,"
which was his highest
grossing film up until 2015.
- Just played the part the way
I thought I should play it.
It's not like I'm
changing my whole career.
It's just this one particular movie
I acted a different way.
Now what?
(milk bottle thuds)
- [Announcer] Now.
- You wear a diaper?
- No.
- [Announcer] Sonny Colfax is finding out.
- Could I have a night light?
- Night light?
- [Announcer] Once you adopt a kid.
(sign crackles)
- There you go, all right?
- You better give that kid back.
- I tried to give him back.
- [Announcer] You've got to keep him.
- Go back to sleep.
- I wet my bed.
- All right. Nice and dry.
No more wetness.
(baseball clunks)
- [Narrator] The fun, loving comedy
about a man pulling his life together
for the sake of a child
was popular with audiences,
but received mixed reviews.
The beginning of Sandler's
battle with the critics.
- We read a script that was a good movie,
but I didn't think I'd be too good at it.
And then we talked to the
president of the company,
Amy Pascal,
and she said that me and
my buddy could rewrite it
and tailor it more for
what I think I could do.
And we did it like that.
They laid down a nice script up top.
And then we kind of did
our own comedy with it.
- [Reporter] How exciting.
(smooth music)
- [Narrator] This role won
Sandler various awards,
including a Blockbuster
Entertainment Award for best actor,
and People's Choice Award
for favorite comedy motion picture.
This helped establish his
iconic comedic character role,
which has followed him
throughout his career
and attracted both
positive and negative views
from film analysts.
Adam Sandler also met
his now wife, Jackie,
on the set of "Big Daddy."
And she had a small
role playing a waitress.
Before the film's release,
the pair were already dating.
Their relationship continued
from strength to strength
and the pair eventually
tied the knot in 2003.
1999 also saw Adam Sandler set up
his own production company,
Happy Madison Productions,
off of the success of his previous roles.
Happy Madison Productions is based
in the Judy Garland Building
on the Sony Studios Lot, Culver City.
It also has company offices run
by Sandler's brother, Scott,
in their hometown of
Manchester, New Hampshire.
"Deuce Bigalow, Male Gigolo"
was the first film
produced by the company,
which was written by
Sandler's fellow coworker
at "Saturday Night Live" Rob Snyder.
Since then, happy Madison productions
has produced all of Sandler's
films, among others.
He is involved with all
aspects of the production,
including rewriting some scripts
to suit his favorite comedy flair.
Adam Sandler also includes
his family in his productions,
often making short appearances.
- You know, I got to do it,
I do whatever the hell I want.
- [Man] I know.
You're Adam Sandler.
- That's what I'm all about,
man
- You are Adam Sandler.
- Who could say no to me?
- You do what you want.
- No one can say no to you.
- Just my mama.
- Just your mama.
- And she does it a lot.
(gentle music)
- [Narrator] Although his earliest films
didn't receive favorable
critical attention,
in 2002 his starring role
in "Punch Drunk Love"
was a hit with audiences and
received positive reviews.
Granting him a Golden Globe nomination.
in 2004, Sandler starred
alongside Drew Barrymore
for the much loved romantic
comedy, "50 First Dates."
The film was originally
written as a drama,
but once Sandler was on board
he rewrote the script into a comedy,
adding in jokes and lighthearted
moments to the storyline.
Despite some negative articles,
the film received mostly positive reviews.
The early 2000s saw Sandler
appear in a variety of films,
all receiving mixed reviews from critics.
Many critics knock him for producing
essentially the same film
just with slightly different
characters and plot lines.
His style of jokes has
been called childish
and many brand him as lazy.
Knowing what hooks audiences in
and being unwilling to
change his style of films.
- [Reporter] What research
did you do for your role?
- Zero.
- [Reporter] Nothing?
- The Sandman would just
wake up, show up on the set.
They'd throw these tight pants on me.
I'd stumble out there drunk, throw a ball.
And then they put me back in my trailer.
- [Narrator] However,
harsh the critics may be,
Sandler's confidence
is not knocked by this.
- [Reporter] Does it matter
what the critics say?
Do you care about that?
- You know, it doesn't
matter that much to me.
I know what they're gonna say every movie.
They're gonna say they don't like it.
So it's... we'll be okay.
I believe in my stuff,
that's important to me.
And my friends and the
people I make the movies for.
I like 'em. That's the good news.
- [Narrator] His family life
also evolved in this time
with Sandler and his wife, Jackie
welcoming a daughter, Sadie, in 2006.
In 2008, Adam Sandler
produced and starred in
"You Don't Mess With The Zohan,"
a comedy about a soldier
who fakes his own death
to pursue his dreams
of becoming a hairstylist
in New York City.
- My guy is a soldier.
He's an Israeli soldier who's
been fighting for many years.
He has borderline super
powers as a soldier.
And he's just kinda tired of fighting
and wants peace in his life,
and has a secret dream
of wanting to cut hair.
And he's embarrassed to tell anybody that.
So anyways, they won't
let him out of the army
because they need him too much.
And he decides to fake his own death
and he goes over to America
and starts cutting hair.
And he wants to work with Paul Mitchell,
but he can't get a job there.
So he starts working at a crappy salon.
And the salon is owned
by a Palestinian girl.
And it's kind of a
"West Side Story" thing.
- They fall for each other,
but they know that they can't be together.
- Well, I did think that it was out there,
but I also kind of laughed and went,
"You'd be funny doing that."
And Adam had this idea
about eight years ago,
and I kept quietly cheerleading this like,
"You know what you gotta to do next?
Israeli hairdresser."
- [Interviewer] so this is
all your fault, basically?
- Maybe.
But then when it came down
time to really doing it,
and they wanted me to play
the Palestinian cab driver,
I had to work at this one.
I didn't really relax for a while.
'Cause it's not just getting the accent
and speaking, Aramaic.
I had to learn...
I mean I had makeup and everything,
and then just be comfortable in it.
So it did take some work,
that honestly took some work this time.
It was fun, but you know, Adam
got to go on set like that.
For me, it was like four hours.
He'd come visit me two hours into makeup.
And he'd go, "Okay, see
you in two hours." (laughs)
- I did have an Israeli guy
who used to cut my hair.
A really nice guy named Yuki.
And he used to talk,
I used to ask him questions
about the Israeli army.
And while he was
discussing the Israeli army
and machine guns and all this stuff,
he'd also be combing my hair
and fluffing it up and stuff.
So I just thought it was funny
to see a guy talk about macho things
and have to put conditioner on my head.
- [Narrator] Sandler
wrote the script in 2000,
but after the events of 9/11
the production team
decided to wait a while
before returning to the project.
- [Interviewer] 'Cause you do handle
incredibly sensitively
issues in this film.
- Yeah. So it came to that.
You know, I didn't think
that all the way through,
I called my friends up and said,
"What do you think of
an Israeli commando guy
becoming a hairstylist?"
And we all laughed.
And then we were writing
the movie, we're like,
"Oh man, we got to talk
about a lot of heavy stuff,"
but we try to make it
as funny as possible.
And also the message at
the end of the movie's
a pretty obvious thing, it
would be nice if we got along.
So, we knew eventually we
were getting to a nice message
just it was ugly to get there.
- [Interviewer] Some people would say,
it's not such a good idea to
handle such sensitive issues
in a comedy format.
- Right, right.
- [Interviewer] Presumably
you disagree. (giggles)
- I guess so.
Maybe if I wasn't in
it, I'd watch it and go,
"Hey, I hate these guys."
Because I'm in it,
I'm going to have to stick
up for it. (chuckles)
- Did you worry about offending people?
- Hmm. Yeah.
Yeah, I did, but I just
thought it was silly enough.
It's silly, it's approached in a silly way
and, yeah, there's very serious...
People who've lost family
to these situations,
there's no way they're
ever going to laugh at it.
Yeah, it was on my mind,
but I just wanted to
make light of a situation
maybe that can be a way
to at least talk about it.
- [Narrator] "You Don't
Mess With The Zohan"
got a pretty weak critical reception,
with reviews noting it
featured a lot of laughs,
but eventually the premise wears thin.
- [Interviewer] Have people
being positive to you about it?
- Yeah, but that's usually how it goes.
(interviewer laughs)
People walk up to me,
they're not going to jump right on
why they can't stand my movies.
Usually they're polite.
But I think it's getting,
if anyone has a problem with it,
that wasn't the intention of it.
The intention was to make you laugh.
And also just, I don't know,
see these Israelis and
Palestinians as people
and not just saying, "Bad guys, bad guys,"
people fighting and blah,
blah, blah, blah, blah.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] The film grossed $38 million
on its opening weekend
and Time magazine, and
The Chicago Sun Times
gave the film three out of four stars.
2008 also saw the release
of "Bedtime Stories,"
starring Adam Sandler in
his first real appearance
in a family oriented film.
His daughter Sadie made
her first onscreen debut
in this film, at the tender age of two.
- He gets to know his nephew
and niece a lot better.
The stories help him just,
become a child again.
I think he's a little bitter
because his dreams aren't coming true.
And then it brings back the old stories
that his dad used to tell
him, and that kind of thing.
- [Narrator] Adam Sandler's company,
Happy Madison Productions,
teamed up with Gunn Films
and Walt Disney to produce the film.
- It's a good time.
I like kids, they're usually
pretty fun to hang with.
They make me feel smarter.
I liked Russell Brand was
a good guy to hang with.
Keri Russell, a 10, great girl.
Nothing wrong with this movie.
- [Narrator] Despite receiving
generally negative reviews from critics,
it was a box office success
after earning $212.9 million,
against its $80 million budget.
- Yeah, I think it's a nice little escape.
It's a cool movie.
It's nice for families,
and there's enough jokes in
there to make people laugh.
And I like it a lot.
- Adam and Jackie Sandler also
welcomed their second child,
Sonny in 2008.
- I love my daddy.
- I love you too.
You guys are my buddies.
I love you more than
anything in the world.
All right, and I just want to say-
- I love my daddy.
- Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah.
All right, you did good.
- [Narrator] In 2010, Adam Sandler,
along with his close friends,
Kevin James, David Spade,
Chris Rock, and Rob Schneider
all starred in the family
comedy "Grown Ups."
- [Reporter] Now, you worked
with a cool group of friends,
people that work on "Saturday Night Live."
How important for you is it
to work with these people
on a regular basis?
- They're the only people
who actually like me,
that's why I stick around with 'em.
And I think they feel the same about me.
Not too many people like any of us.
- [Reporter] That's not true though.
- No, it's not, just we do okay.
- [Narrator] His daughter Sadie
also appeared in this film,
making it apparent that
Sandler wanted his children
to accompany him on set.
- [Interviewer] Are there
other children as well,
or is it just your guys?
- I was the only one
who was psychotic enough
to put my kids in the movie.
these guys would say,
"Why would I do that?"
and I was like (mumbles).
- [Chris] I said, "Why
would you put them in?"
he goes, "Because they're talented."
(Adam laughs)
- [Narrator] The film's plot tells a story
of five lifelong friends
who won their high school
basketball championship in 1978.
They reunite three decades
later for a 4th of July weekend,
after learning about the sudden death
of their basketball coach.
- I just wanted to make a
movie about old friends.
And I knew that we all were
pretty darn tight in real life,
that it made sense.
So it was about just catching up
and seeing that life
doesn't change that much.
- [Narrator] Despite receiving
generally unfavorable
reviews from critics,
it grossed $271 million
and led to a sequel,
"Grown Ups 2," in 2013.
After a mass amount of negative reviews
linked with his films,
Sandler began becoming choosy
about the press interviews he did,
and which reporters he would speak to,
leaving some worried he would
be disengaged with his fans.
At the beginning of 2011,
Adam Sandler was honored
with a Hollywood star
on the Walk of Fame for his career,
in which his films had grossed
more than $3 billion
worldwide at that time.
on February 1st 2011,
the star was unveiled
outside of the W Hotel.
Sandler was shocked, but
honored to receive the star
with his close friends,
Kevin James, and co-star
from "The water Boy,"
Henry Winkler.
- It is no mistake that
we are standing here
to celebrate Adam.
- Yes, sir.
- I met Adam on the phone the first time
when I called to say how happy I was
to be in the Hanukkah song.
(crowd laughs)
And the next time we met was
on the set of "The water Boy."
- Yes, sir.
(crowd cheers)
- But the fact of the matter is
that what you don't know is
that this man standing here
is not just a wonderful
son, an incredible husband,
a loving father, a producer,
a writer, and an actor,
and a loyal, loyal friend.
He is also dedicated to the
people that helped him get here,
his fans.
(crowd cheers)
We are here on Hollywood Boulevard.
We are here where history is made,
because this man, Adam Sandler,
has helped the history in recent times
of Hollywood Boulevard as we know it.
He is part of this history.
He has made history,
and today his star will be cemented
for history forever.
I am proud to know him.
And directly across, this is
(speaks in a foreign language),
which is a Yiddish word,
which means, meant to be.
I love this man.
And my star is directly
across the street from his.
(crowd cheers)
- Right on, Henry.
- Ladies and gentlemen,
we are here to celebrate
an unbelievably loving human being,
Adam Sandler.
(crowd cheers)
- I really, my friends who are here today,
I want to thank them so much.
They always back me up a hundred percent
and make sure I accomplish
whatever I set out to do.
It's been a nice, just a great ride.
I started off, I worked
hard as a comedian,
then I got on TV, then I got into movies,
and then I've really been getting to do...
Just so many people come out here
with the same dreams that I had
and somehow I'm getting to do them
and I really appreciate it.
And then... (laughs)
I love you.
You wanna say something?
Say "Dadda."
Okay, you'll do it later.
So anyways, I want to
thank everybody here.
Sony Pictures has helped me
throughout my whole career too,
has backed me up.
Thank you to Sony.
I think they even bought this
star for me, so thank you.
- I mean, let's hear it for the man
who employs half this town.
What do you say, huh?
(crowd cheers)
Really? What a, what a, what
a list of accomplishments.
- That was absolutely incredible, really.
- I gotta say, though,
a lot of those things you
kind of knew about Adam.
You knew all the movies
he's done and everything.
I'd like to share with you,
maybe a couple of things
you don't know about Adam,
that would be good.
Here's one, we not only
share a deep friendship
and a great working relationship,
we also share the same plastic surgeon.
Well, now people need to understand,
when your face is your fortune,
you do whatever it takes to stay on top.
Adam, I want to thank
you for introducing me
to Dr. Manboobian
and all the fine people over
at Beverly Hills Rejuvenation,
thank you, it's been a wonderful ride.
It's been a wonderful ride.
Here are some other tidbits about Adam
that you may not know.
His middle name is Richard.
I think a lot of people
actually knew that, right?
- No, I don't know.
- Did he say that?
Did he say that his
middle name is Richard?
He's got two beautiful
daughters, you knew that.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, well behaved.
- Oh, here's one.
Adam is a huge star, I mean, he is huge,
and he's on a first name
basis with people like Sting,
Bono,
and Oprah.
(crowd laughs)
I didn't know this.
He created the game show, "Tic Tac Dough."
He also created the five second rule
for when you drop food on the
floor, but can still eat it.
Thank you.
- Well, if my words fall short, know this,
there is no greater tribute I can pay you
than the fact that I am wearing slacks.
I don't wear slacks for anyone
except the people I love.
And court appearances.
(crowd laughs)
Adam, I love you, buddy.
- I love you.
(crowd cheers)
- This is a big deal.
I really feel honored.
I can't believe this happened in my life.
I did come out here when I was very young.
I was a kid, I was growing up.
I had an amazing mom.
I had an amazing dad,
brothers and sisters.
My brother and my two sisters.
All they ever did was make me
feel like I'm good at things.
And even when I was terrible
at things, they were like,
"You're so remarkable,
Adam, you're great."
Anything I did, I sang in the car,
"What a great singer. You're so funny."
Just, they instilled me with confidence.
So much so that I thought I
could be a pro baseball player
until my father said, "You're too slow."
But that was when I was 11.
Then I had to just go, "All
right, maybe a comedian."
But I love my family very much.
And they made it a point,
the whole family was
always about our family.
My parents always made me feel
very like there was nothing else,
but me and my brother and two sisters.
So I just wanted to thank my mom,
and my father, who's
watching down I'm sure.
He'd be very excited about this.
(crowd cheers)
I love you. I love you guys.
I love you, Val.
Love my sister at home, Liz, and Scott.
And all their kids, Tyler,
Jared, Victoria, Jillian.
They're all smart kids.
And, I gotta say,
one of the greatest things
that's ever happened to me,
coming out to Hollywood,
setting out to do what I'm doing,
I got to meet my wife.
You hear me, my wife?
I got to meet my wife,
who I love very much.
If I wasn't pursuing this career,
I wouldn't be out here,
I wouldn't have met her,
I wouldn't have had these great kids.
I wouldn't have felt as good as I feel
about my life every day.
I do love her very much.
I love that my kids are
not hearing a word of this.
(romantic music)
- [Narrator] 2011 had Adam Sandler
working with close
friend Jennifer Anniston
on a film called, "Just Go With It."
A romantic comedy which, once again,
couldn't win over critics,
but was adored by fans.
- I, I wear this fake wedding ring.
- You're a pig.
- Just tell her you're getting a divorce.
- It's over.
I'm gonna sign the papers
in a couple of days and-
- Okay, I just need to hear it from her.
- You wanna, w-what do you mean?
- I need to meet her.
- How 'bout if she texts
you, would that be good?
- I cannot believe I'm doing this.
- I want to create the illusion
I had a hot first wife,
not this.
- Okay, come on, let's go.
- Is that her?
- Hello, boring.
- Why you wearing that?
- I'm just, uh, playing the part.
- [Narrator] Also in 2011,
Sandler starred in "Jack and Jill,"
a comedy film in which he
played both starring roles
of Jack and his annoying
twin sister, Jill.
"Jack and Jill" is
considered by some critics
to be the worst film made by Adam Sandler.
However, once again,
audiences turned out to
see the movie in theaters,
earning it $149 million
against its $79 million budget.
(gentle music)
2012 saw Adam Sandler
spend some time off screen
when he voiced a character
for the animated film
"Hotel Transylvania."
Sandler also got his
youngest daughter, Sonny,
a voiceover role in the film.
- [Interviewer] No, you know,
you always sort of have the
same cast of characters,
whether it's in your films,
now in animated films,
what is it about these guys
that just makes you always
wanna work with them,
Continue to work with them?
- They're just very funny guys.
I just love being around 'em,
and we have a good time together.
- [Interviewer] And what was the best part
of working on this animated film?
I know you're not in front of the camera.
- Listen, yeah, we worked hard.
Me and my friends worked
with this guy, Genndy,
for about a year and a half or two.
It took a lot of our time,
but just knowing that my kids
were going to have a good time watching.
That's all that was exciting to me.
- [Interviewer] Now, you and Adam
are no stranger to working together.
What is it about the partnership
that continues to make you
guys wanna collaborate,
whether it's on film or
these animated projects?
- He makes me laugh, you know what I mean?
We just laugh.
We laugh together all the time.
We have a great relationship.
We just click, our families get together.
We have the same sensibility.
And I'm always honored
to do stuff with him,
and wanna work with him.
So, when he thinks of me to
put me in any of his movies,
I'm thrilled and it's great.
You know you're going to feel comfortable,
it's like seeing your family again
and working with your family.
So you can mess up, you can
have fun, you can try stuff.
- [Narrator] The children's
movie was popular enough
to earn two more sequels,
in 2015 and 2018,
in which Sandler reprised
his role as count Dracula.
(upbeat music)
The Sequel to Sandler's
own film, "Grown Ups"
premiered in 2013,
with critics calling it unnecessary.
However, at this point in his career,
Sandler was used to the negative
backlash towards his films
and was not phased by the reports.
Sandler's 2014 film "Blended"
saw his third collaboration
with actress Drew Barrymore.
The romantic comedy revolves
around Sandler and Barrymore
finding themselves together
at a holiday resort
after an unsuccessful blind date,
where the attraction between them grows,
and their kids, benefit from
the blooming relationship.
- Hello everybody.
- [Brendan] This is very cool, Mom.
What the fudge is he doing here?
- Is this a sick dream?
- Do I have a new mommy?
- Isn't this place fantastic? So romantic.
- We are not dating.
- My mom is frigging hot.
- Ew.
- No, not hot.
- That's just wrong.
- This is so pretty.
Wow.
- Oh.
We're out of gas!
- What?
- Start.
- [Narrator] Although the film
received mainly negative reviews,
the positive support from
fans earned the movie
mixed ratings across platforms
and made it a box office success.
Based on the amount of films
Happy Madison Productions has produced.
Adam Sandler was offered a
deal with Netflix in 2014
to write and produce films
for the streaming platform.
- [Journalist] I want to know,
why did you decide to have
this close relationship
with Netflix, and how
is working with them?
- They've been great to me.
And they've
just allowed me to be
free creatively.
And it was just really close
with Ted Sarandos
and the whole team.
It's an exciting place
to be right now for me,
the enthusiasm is gigantic.
- [Narrator] His first
Netflix release came in 2015,
the western comedy, "The Ridiculous Six."
Though the movie was
panned by the critics,
Netflix said that the movie had received
an impressive number of views
within the first 30 days of its release.
Sandler went on to
produce five more movies
for the streaming giant,
such as "The Do-Over" and "Sandy Wexler."
His film, "The Meyerowitz
Stories," released in 2017,
received positive reviews.
- We both had, and Ben,
and Elizabeth Marvel,
and everybody in the
movie has amazing dialog.
And Noah Baumbach,
his other movies are insane, I love 'em.
And then he sent this script,
and I think it was unanimous,
except for this guy,
we had to win him over.
We were all pretty away with
just the story and the words.
- From watching what
Ben and Noah have done,
I was excited no matter what,
because I loved those movies.
But the fact that he wrote this script,
and what all our characters did,
and what the story was.
That wasn't why I wanted
to work with them,
the fact that it ended up being this movie
was quite a bonus,
how great I thought that script was
and getting to see Noah shoot
and being a part of it.
- They're just such terrific actors.
I think in some ways,
because they both,
they gave over so strongly
to both their characters,
it creates a kind of intimacy
that you feel when you watch the movie.
I think it also doesn't hurt
that they've known each other a long time
and never really worked together.
They did a small thing in Happy Gilmore,
but this is their first movie
where they're really both
in it for the whole thing.
And I think there was something
exciting for them too.
And I think they saw it as a challenge
that they wanted to do great work.
- I would say that the
dad's... Your character,
- I'm whooping you.
- You are. You are, for sure.
- You're definitely getting in the way.
You're trying to ruin what I have.
Well, I'm just trying-
- Butting in.
- I mean, I do feel it's interesting,
both characters have their own
things that they need to...
I don't know, they have to grow,
they both have to grow, right?
And you have dedicated
yourself to your daughter,
but in a way, they're
things that you've sub...
- Yeah.
- What is it, sub?
- Scared of.
- Jugated, or something.
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
So I feel like, I mean,
you can make money,
it doesn't make you a success.
- Oh no.
- I think, being content in your life
or feeling good about
yourself as a person, or-
- Does anybody really feel that?
I got to get to that.
- This is getting so deep.
- Loved it.
I mean, me and Ben,
know each other forever,
and it's been a very long
time since we worked together.
This was great to see him everyday,
and do hard work with him.
And we both loved the script so much.
We didn't want to let Noah down,
but we both feel the same
about being with Hoffman.
It's an honor.
And it's something as a
kid you would not believe,
that one day you'd be
making movies with that guy
who is one of the best,
if not the best.
- I mean, Dustin,
I'd walk over broken glass
to work with any time,
'cause we're sort of joined at the hip
and this is our third time.
So that was heaven.
Adam and Ben were a joy to work with,
because they were slightly
out of their comfort zone.
So they were doing serious roles.
And I was an outsider,
and playing an outsider.
- [Narrator] The comedy drama was released
in select theaters and on
Netflix in October of that year.
And follows a group of
dysfunctional siblings
trying to live in the
shadow of their father.
- Well, the interesting thing I think
is that we all love each other very much
and we can't stand being with each other.
(reporter laughs)
- Yes, yes.
(reporter) - and that's real life.
- Yes.
- "It's what you do," is what
my sister in the movie says.
It's something like, "Dad's
so mean and blah, blah, blah.
And he never treats you right,
why are you here right now?"
And she's like, "It's what you do."
It's what you do as a kid,
what you do as a parent,
even when there's something
that's not clicking,
you're always trying to make it work.
- [Woman] Are you Harold
Meyerowitz's son, Matthew?"
- Yes.
- And this is Danny, also
Harold Meyerowitz's son.
- I didn't realize he had two sons.
- And a daughter
- Dad, it'll be okay here.
- It'll be nice to spend time with Dad.
You know, I didn't get a lot
of time with him growing up.
- Son of a bitch.
(cue cracks)
♪ Well, once we had an easy
ride and always felt the same ♪
- Dad, what the fuck?
- [Reporter] This film
has a real all-star cast.
It's not just you two, it's
Emma Thompson, it's Ben Stiller.
- Yes.
- [Reporter] That must have been
just so much fun to film, right?
- Oh yeah.
- Yes.
But we would have preferred
it if it was just us.
(Adam laughs)
- They just kept showing up.
And I was like, "Just put a camera on them
and let them do their thing."
- They hadn't worked in a long time.
(they laugh)
- It was just luck that this
guy wrote an amazing movie
and handed it to me and said,
"Would you like to be in it?"
That was the best part of it.
I read it and knew it was a great movie
and just didn't wanna let Noah down,
and worked hard,
and that's it.
- As we were saying,
we all prepared a lot and talked a lot,
and as a director,
in many ways,
part of your job is to see the actor
and see what they're
doing and help guide them.
But with the best actors there's
this other thing going on
that is out of your control,
in the best possible way,
because they're they're drawing
something from inside them
that's a mystery.
And it might even be a mystery
to them in some way too.
But Adam connected to something
very deeply in this guy,
it's something we haven't
even talked about that much,
but I would marvel throughout the shoot
at just how true and unacted it seemed.
It was behavior, and it was deep.
It was very moving to me.
- When we started the film, and
I was doing stuff with Adam.
And also there were things he
was doing with other people,
but I happen to be on the
set, and I observed it,
Noah uses the word deep.
And I think what that means is,
this is my personal feeling,
I don't think actors should
play parts unless they're in it.
Otherwise it looks like
they're performing a part.
"Oh, well so, and so is an
asshole, but I'm not an asshole,
so I'll just perform an asshole.
I'll just get a few people in my head
that I know are real
people that are assholes,
and I'll just do that."
I think we have the
asshole in us, all of us.
And it's up to us to enlarge on that.
And I thought what Adam was doing,
'cause I couldn't put it into words,
I agree with Noah,
there was something about him
that I had not seen before.
And I know him and I had
done another film with him.
And I went home and I
said to my wife, I said,
"I think Adam has hit a part of himself
in which he would be
the person that didn't make it."
And that's as close as
you can get to the bone.
And I thought that's what
Adam was doing, to hit that.
'Cause we can, we all can.
- [Narrator] Adam Sandler
was especially singled out
for praise by critics,
which was a breath of
fresh air for the actor,
considering his past negative reviews.
The film was shown at
the Cannes Film Festival,
but sparked controversy,
as it was a film made for online streaming
and not the big screen.
- [Reporter] But it caused
a bit of controversy
in Cannes, right?
The Netflix logo was booed
in one of the screenings.
Were you surprised by that?
- But it wasn't our film.
- It took a minute to get used to there.
It got some noise the first night.
And then the movie was such a
great movie, people relaxed.
And then ours came up and they
were a little calmer with it.
And we were glad they calmed down.
- We got a five minute standing ovation.
- Yeah
- Yes.
- [Reporter] It is a great film.
- You heard that? Did you hear that?
- Yes.
- I did hear
about the standing ovation afterwards.
- Say six minutes then,
it sounds a little...
- it was a six and a half
minute standing ovation.
- Felt good, standing that long.
It was good for the calves.
- [Narrator] In 2019,
Adam Sandler produced "Uncut
Gems" and "Murder Mystery"
for streaming giant Netflix.
- Do you know how that makes me feel?
- Never resurface anything.
- You think your life
is more important than mine?
- I don't know who said that.
(dramatic music)
- [Howard] I told you about
how things were gonna go.
You like the way things are going now?
- [Howard] That's my family.
Get the kids out of the house.
- You having a good time.
- Yes.
- This was like a 10 year project.
But the impetus originally,
the original impetus was inspired
by our dad's time working
in the diamond district.
And his stories that he would tell,
you'd always be on the edge of
your seat, listening to him.
Like, "Well, what did you do next?
What did you do then?
What do you mean, they poked your tire?
You knew they were following
you so you didn't pull over?"
He was like, "I couldn't pull over,
They were going to kill me."
So it's like the stories
kept you on the edge,
but there were also
comedic and ridiculous.
Like, "They did that?"
Then you start doing the
research in the diamond district
and there's this energy there,
in the diamond district,
where it's just the people
have gamble, on top of gamble,
on top of gamble.
And there's seven different
things happening at once.
And you're trying to
pay attention and all,
but it's just, it's alive.
You know what I mean?
- And the myth of this Howard character,
was something that it's kind of incredible
to see him exist now in this new universe.
- So I do think that we knew
that we wanted to do a thriller.
We knew that it was
going to be a thriller,
and I like the idea of
form following function.
So if you're going to tell a thriller,
it better be thrilling.
And how much more thrilling
could we have made this movie?
- Being Howard Ratner was a good feeling.
It was fun going through
what he went through
and diving in with him
and trying to be that guy.
And I loved it.
- Sandler such a unique person.
And it's great when you meet
a star and they are unique,
you know what I mean?
And he's unique because he's so himself,
you know what I mean?
And he's so grounded, and
he's such a good person.
But he's also, again, nuts,
in the greatest way possible,
you know what I mean?
His humor is amazingly
strange and I loved it.
We've loved it forever.
Forever, since we were little kids,
that was the first thing we learned from,
was through his humor.
And then of course the movies
are just these iconic things.
But I think that getting to
know him on a personal level
and see the work that he put into this.
There's people who prepare for roles
and there's people who
just enter the roles,
and he did both at the same time.
And that was amazing to see.
In the edit I would sit
there and just watch
the closeups to see all
these little micro decisions.
And now I watched the
movie and he's just Howard,
He's not Adam Sandler.
- Which is-
- he's just Howard.
- He said something where he's like,
'cause the way we would shoot the film
he didn't know what his closeup was.
So he would just be on
that level the whole time.
Yes, even in the wides.
Even when he wasn't on camera.
- [Interviewer] Just that level?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, he didn't know, he was just like,
"Well, what are we shooting now?"
I was just like, "Don't worry about it."
- [Narrator] "Murder Mystery"
saw Sandler reunite with Jennifer Anniston
for a comedy drama, which Netflix stated
was their most watched film of
2019 on their U.S. platform,
and had the biggest opening weekend
for a film on their platform.
- Twisted my arm, barely,
not even a little bit.
It's just, how do you say no to that?
He says "Please" And you say, yes.
- You're going to love the mystery.
I have to pay homage to the mystery.
It works, and it's, it's a fun watch.
You're going to love the locations,
because it's very
picturesque and beautiful.
You're going to love the adventure.
You're going to love the idea
of going to a distant place
and maybe getting wrapped
up in something crazy.
- [Narrator] The film revolves
around Sandler and Aniston,
a married couple that get
caught up in a murder mystery
on a billionaire's yacht.
- My name is Inspector
Laurent de la Croix.
I will now summon you for questioning.
- Why is that smoke ring so
good, how did he do that?
- Did you notice anything
out of the ordinary.
- [All Together] The Americans.
- But we didn't do this.
- [Nick] Someone's trying to frame us.
- We do things together.
So can we please just figure this out?
(gun fires)
It's just like "Death in The Library."
- What happens in "Death in The Library?"
- They died. It's why it's
called "Death in The Library."
(gun fires)
(Audrey screams)
You know, we were from
Brooklyn and fish out of water.
And they were all sort of
upper crusted, wealthy people
who all had a motive into
offing the man who was offed.
So it just was part of the story.
- It was all Jen saying, "We
have to do something together.
I can't be apart this long.
You're an amazing human.
I feel so sick to my stomach
when you're not near me."
So I said, "Let me just
make a movie with you,
so you can relax."
- On a personal level,
it was hard to believe that
I was directing Adam Sandler
after watching so many Adam Sandler movies
before I was a professional director.
So in that respect,
I had to pinch myself
pretty much every day,
but Sandler's so down to earth
that he just felt like we had
been friends for a long time.
There was a couple times
where I found myself
quoting his movies on set.
Not because he was there,
but just because it's
in my DNA as a person.
And he would hear me and I was like,
"Is it okay to... Can I do that?"
And he's like, "Yeah."
And he likes it.
So he's just a real person
that was awesome to work with.
- My two daughters
always pop in my movies.
- My wife, she's funny in the movie,
she's a flight attendant,
we had a nice couple of
scenes together, it was great.
- [Narrator] The film
received average reviews,
meaning Sandler didn't face
much negative backlash.
Adam Sandler also
created a comedy special,
sarcastically titled
100% fresh for Netflix.
This was to preempt the negative reviews.
However, it was favored by
critics and highly recommended.
Due to the popularity of the six films
Happy Madison Productions
had made for Netflix,
Adam Sandler signed a further deal
with the streaming
platform in January, 2020,
confirming he would produce
a further four films for the company.
- You signed a multi-movie
deal with Netflix.
You must think it's the future of cinema.
- That, and the fact that they
liked me so much feels nice.
It's a combination.
I think they've been great to me.
And they also say I'm
wonderful, and that feels nice.
- [Narrator] Despite the critical backlash
he has faced throughout his career so far,
Adam Sandler has always had
a solid fan base behind him
supporting all his productions
and pushing his career further.
- [Reporter] Obviously your
films are, as you said,
proving hugely popular still on Netflix.
Does it matter what the critics say?
Do you care about that?
- It doesn't matter that much to me.
I know what they're gonna say every movie,
they're going to say they don't like it.
We'll be okay.
I believe in my stuff,
that's important to me.
and my friends and the
people I make the movies for,
I like 'em.
That's the good news.
- [Reporter] Do you think in the past,
critics have been too harsh on his films?
- I don't care about critics.
You know what, John Cleese
said said the best thing to me,
since you're from the UK,
John Cleese, my real hero,
the funniest big man, who ever lived.
funniest guy, and a great writer,
but Cleese said the best
thing about critics.
He said, "Critics,
don't even ignore them."
I'll take it to my grave. Thank you.
Ah, who cares?
I'll take criticism
from somebody who does the
same thing we're doing,
trying to write, produce
direct and make movies
and star in movies and deal with all this.
Let's see them do it.
And then I'll listen to
what they have to say.
- Working with Adam
Sandler was definitely,
probably, one of the best experiences
I've ever had in my career.
And I got to learn so much from him.
Mostly working side by side with him,
watching him be the
director and the actor,
and pull it all together.
So it was a great learning experience too.
(upbeat music)
- [Narrator] Most of his fans
fell in love with the actor
from his early career,
starring and "Happy Gilmore"
and "The Water Boy."
Even those who weren't born
at the time of the release
notably mention these titles,
proving his films are now
considered comedy classics.
Sandler's filmography serves
as a sort of comfort food for fans.
Most explaining that his films
are really easy to watch,
and the simplicity inspires laughs.
For his fans, Adam Sandler
has a relatable appeal
an, "I'll always be me" nobility,
which keeps his audiences
coming back for more.
Although critics might not like
the similarities in the
characters he plays,
his viewers seem to love the similarities
in each character he plays
in every different film he stars in.
Making movies for Netflix
makes his productions
more accessible to a wider audience.
And will definitely keep him popular.
(gentle music)
Despite a career filled
with fluctuating reviews from critics
and films that didn't quite
meet their box office budgets,
Adam Sandler has managed
to survive the storm
and come out on top,
proving his title is a fan
favorite is here to stay.
- [Interviewer] What's the best part
about being successful and/or famous?
- I don't know. I don't know.
I don't think about that.
I'm just happy to be working.
- [Narrator] Everyone knows
of at least one Happy Madison film
and the actor is a household name
who keeps bringing laughs
to our living rooms.
- On set he's so nice, and so welcoming,
it makes you feel very comfortable.
There's no room for you to be nervous.
Because he's just making jokes,
or trying to think of other
ways to make the scene work.
- And I feel like we've
got a lot in common.
He's nicer than me.
- No, just we have a thing that,
I think we share some
sort of mutual subset of-
- Loving of our parents too.
- Yes.
- [Narrator] Adam Sandler is
at the height of his career,
and with a new Netflix deal
and filmography that just keeps growing,
audiences are awaiting the arrival
of his next lovable character.
(upbeat music)