Spoilers ahead for Happy Gilmore 2.
Adam Sandler is a beloved comedian and actor, who has put out a number of truly iconic movies throughout the years. In the past few years he’s been releasing a number of projects for those with a Netflix subscription, and the latest upcoming Adam Sandler movie to finally arrive is Happy Gilmore 2. The sequel is a love letter to the original, and pays homage to Carl Weathers and other actors who died before it could begin production. And actor Christopher McDonald aka Shooter McGavin spoke to CinemaBlend about the way the sequel honors them.
Happy Gilmore is one of the best Adam Sandler movies in my opinion, so I was thrilled when I got to speak to Sandman and and other members of the cast ahead of the sequel’s release. The sequel features a ton of returning characters, and also pays tribute to those who are no longer with us. As you can see in the video above, I spoke to McDonald about this aspect of the film, where he told me:
Talk about the heart of this movie. We have our big first meeting of Gilmore and McGavin and its an homage to the people we’ve lost for this second movie because we didn’t do it quick enough.
It’s been 29 years since the original Happy Gilmore, and unfortunately we’ve seen a number of beloved actors from the original move pass away during that time. And while Carl Weathers famously died 2024, he isn’t the only one that’s died. Frances Bay passed away in 2011 and Joe Flattery followed suit in 2024. Additionally, Richard Kiel died back in 2014 at the age of 74.
Adam Sandler and company pays respect to every one of these actors throughout Happy Gilmore 2, which helps add to the movie’s heart. Happy has a photo of his Grandma Gilmore in his car, while Flattery and Kiel both appear in flashbacks and get spiritual successors in the new movie. What’s more, the sequel’s ending sees all the characters who died wave goodbye to Happy. While this mirrors the original film’s bonkers ending, it has even more meaning given the real-life losses.
Chris McDonald shared his reaction to the way this was included in the sequel, telling me:
It was a beautiful way to do it in a classy way and send our prayers and gratitude to them. Things like that made this movie really exceptional in a lot of ways. And I love the heart it’s brought to this story.
He’s not wrong. CinemaBlend’s review of Happy Gilmore 2(which I personally wrote) also praised how much heart is in the goofy comedy. It does this in big ways by honoring actors from the original who passed away (including Bob Barker), as well as the main story itself.
When we meet Happy after all these years, he’s in sorry shape. He’s an alcoholic, using booze to numb the guilt and grief of Virginia’s death. But as the Happy Gilmore 2 trailer shows, he decides to sober up and get back to golfing in order to help his beloved daughter Vienna go abroad to ballet school.
What follows is a family-driven story, including the ways that Julie Bowen’s Virginia is included despite her character’s death. McDonald spoke on that subject as well, offering:
Because it’s all about family, it’s all about love and keeping it together. And what you have to do to go the extra mile. That’s a great story in every American movie. It’s a great lesson and he does it with such great form. I’m so happy for him because it’s really an honor to be in this kind of a movie that makes you laugh and also gets you welled up a little bit.
He’s not wrong. Maybe I’m just a softie or a hardcore Happy Gilmore fan (or both), but I found myself surprisingly emotional at a few points during the sequel. In my opinion that’s always been one of Adam Sandler’s biggest strengths; while he creates silly, goofy movies, there’s usually a story with heart underneath all the laughs.
Happy Gilmore 2 is available now on Netflix as part of the 2025 movie release list. Sandler has been on a roll on the streaming service, so we’ll have to see if this long-awaited sequel has the same success.
