Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched Jay Kelly via Netflix subscription.
The comparative descriptor “like an Adam Sandler movie” can draw out a surprisingly comprehensive spectrum of assumptions, including sophomoric comedies, pulse-pounding dramas and feel-good family fare. Even with that in mind, Noah Baumbach’s critic-pleasing Jay Kelly still feels like an outlier, as the 2025 Netflix Original adheres to its reality in a grim way that many of Sandler’s movies don’t, even with all of its luxurious excess.
As good as all of the performances are in Jay Kelly, from the vulnerability shown by George Clooney to the Laura Dern-iness of Laura Dern, I found it extremely easy to relate to and sympathize with Sandler’s ever-loyal Ron Sukenick, the long put-upon manager whose time is most easily manipulated by Jay’s whims. In my mind, Ron is the true protagonist, and the role really crystallized some of the long-standing feelings I’ve had about the SNL vet’s performances that I admittedly hadn’t fully examined before.
Adam Sandler Is Getting Oscar Buzz For Jay Kelly, And I Think It’s Well Deserved
As Ron Sukenick, Adam Sandler plays someone who puts his professional responsibilities above all others, and puts the happiness of his blue-ribbon client far above his own, with Ron’s family forever forced to take the backseat. There’s disappointment to be had, but also a hardened resignation in knowing that this is what life is like with Jay Kelly in the spotlight, and is also what pays the bills. It’s a role that doesn’t give Sandler many moments where he’s flashing his signature smile with authenticity, and there’s instead a sense of fatigued surrender lingering beneath the surface.
To me, Ron’s arc in the film is the most successful and bittersweet, and I genuinely found myself surprised when he agreed to stick around for the award ceremony, mainly because I think he deserves more than just a last-ditch stab at friendship from Jay. I just care about the dude.
Sandler sparked Oscar buzz even before Jay Kelly’s trailer was released, due in part to his fashion choices, but that awards buzz continued even after the movie screened, which the actor had a great response to. Helping those assumptions along is the fact that his name was indeed called when the Golden Globes nominations were announced on Dec. 8. I think that nod and an Oscar nom are both deserved, and it’s in large part because Ron feels like Adam Sandler when he’s slightly more bummed out than usual.
Ron Sukenick Brought Into Focus That My Favorite Adam Sandler Performances Are (Almost) Always His Least Performative
There are hundreds, even thousands, of actors out there who absolutely need to bring an extra spark to a performance, as their default personalities are either not interesting or not dynamic enough to hold attention. But Adam Sandler doesn’t need to embrace any such artifice, as his natural charisma and low-energy demeanor are endlessly watchable, regardless of whether he’s giving a late-night interview, commanding the stage for a stand-up performance, or heading up a star-studded Netflix comedy.
Sandler is the king of casual, regardless of genre, and that’s the zone I love to see him in the most, when it seems like he just walked off the street and stepped into the role. I could go the rest of my life without ever seeing or even thinking about The Waterboy or Little Nicky again, for instance, because Bobby Boucher and Little Nicky are two of the most annoying movie characters I can think of. I’d also change seats in a bus if Hubie Halloween or Sandy Wexler sat next to me, and they’re not the only ones.
Even though I absolutely adore Adam Sandler’s comedy albums, which hinge almost entirely on the actor playing over-the-top characters, those short bursts are far easier to contend with than feature runtimes. If I’m sticking around for 90+ minutes, I’d much rather watch Sandler play someone as close to a real person as possible, even if the narrative is a stretch.
In this respect, I’m talking about him playing Barry Egan in Punch-Drunk Love, Sonny Koufax in Big Daddy, Don Truby in Men, Women & Children, George Simmons in Funny People and Danny Friedman in You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah. Even Longfellow Deeds feels like a normal dude, though I don’t really like that movie very much. And sure, Uncut Gems‘ Howard Ratner isn’t 100% natural, but it doesn’t require the actor to dumb himself down at all, so it works here.
That Doesn’t Mean I Dislike All Of The Movies With Adam Sandler’s Wackier Roles
To be sure, this whole career-arcing view on Adam Sandler is definitely more tied to performances than my overall opinions of the movies themselves. For instance, I think Happy Gilmore is one of the funniest sports movies of all time, but I don’t think Sandler’s acting is particularly outstanding, and the character is often a self-obsessed turd. Same for Billy Madison, which I love despite its doofus titular character. (I also think Hubie Halloween is fun, for all that I bump against the character himself.)
As well, I don’t particularly care for Robbie Hart or Henry Roth in The Wedding Singer or 50 First Dates, but I’ll rewatch both of those without issue. His vocal performances in the Hotel Transylvania movies and Leo can even get grating, but not enough to totally ruin those projects. And the list goes on.
So even though I don’t think Jay Kelly was the best movie released in 2025 by a long shot, I do feel comfortable in saying it showcases one of my favorite Adam Sandler performances from his entire career. Is this my way of soft-launching an attempt to be Adam Sandler’s new friend? I’m not saying that’s true, but I’m also pointing to Jay Kelly and thinking I can do a better job than that guy in the friend department.
Jay Kelly is currently available to stream on Netflix. Find out if Adam Sandler will win the Golden Globe when the awards telecast airs on CBS and streams via Paramount+ subscription on Sunday, January 11, 2026.
