“Happy Gilmore” Gets a Solid Comeback With Netflix Sequel

Almost thirty years ago, Adam Sandler introduced us to one of his most famous characters in the 1996 movie “Happy Gilmore.” Even though it only earned $41.2 million on a $12 million budget, it still became a moderate success and also developed a cult following. Now, many years later, we get a Netflix sequel to the 1996 movie!

Happy Gilmore was at the top of his game - until a stroke of bad luck changed everything. Can gold’s one-time bad boy make a comeback fit for a legend?

Gilmore returns to the sport of golf since his retirement to finance his daughter’s ballet classes.

A “Happy Gilmore” sequel has been rumored for quite a few years now. And now that “Happy Gilmore 2” is now streaming on Netflix, is the sequel just as funny as the beloved 1996 comedy? Well, yes and no.

Now, while the sequel’s jokes and gags can be a little juvenile at times (I mean, it is an Adam Sandler movie) the movie can still generate some decent laughs. And in between all the laughs we get from the former golfer/hockey player, we also get a bit of an emotional journey with the character.

A good amount of humor that we get throughout the comedy sequel is primarily from the numerous callbacks from the 1996 movie. Happy Gilmore relives the moment where Chubbs tells him the iconic line “It’s all in the hips” and Gilmore also gets some humorous advice from Chubb’s son, Slim, which can actually be quite funny.

In the sequel, we even get another “You can do it!” moment from Sandler regular Rob Schneider in Gilmore’s new “Happy Place” (which is actually funnier than the original). Eminem even steals the show when he makes a hilarious, memorable cameo as the son of the original heckler in the first movie. There’s also a few moments between Gilmore and Shooter McGavin (his opponent from the first movie) that can give you a good chuckle.

And, speaking of cameos, there are lots of them! Numerous golfers have cameos in this movie and golfer Scottie Scheffler even makes fun of his 2024 arrest in a scene (which I actually had to look up since I didn’t really follow the reference). Rapper Bad Bunny and Post Malone also have some hilarious scene-stealing moments as well.

“Happy Gilmore 2” also features a few nice tributes for numerous actors from the original movie that aren’t with us, such as Bob Barker and Carl Weathers. In the movie, we also get to see how his character has evolved since the last movie and see how he’s dealing with a terrible accident (which is actually a really nice touch for this movie).

Like I said before, the sequel also has some comedic moments that are slightly on the juvenile side which really doesn’t bring a whole lot of laughs. It’s mainly the yelling Adam Sandler moments that we usually see in his movies. But, those moments really shouldn’t ruin your experience with watching this streaming sequel.

Overall, “Happy Gilmore 2” is a sequel that will likely appeal to people who have enjoyed the 1996 movie and also a fan of Sandler’s other comedies. Also, what other Adam Sandler comedy would you like a sequel to? Make sure to let me know on my Wyoming County Examiner Reviews page!

• There were plans for Carl Weathers to return as Chubbs before his death in 2024. Adam Sandler said, "We had a painful change. Carl Weathers had a massive part. I would talk to Carl, and we were excited, and then Carl passed away. We had to rewrite a lot of the stuff, and even what the story was. We made a lot of nice references to how great Chubbs was in the movie. That was the biggest change."

• Early in the film, when Happy first returns to a golf course to join a game, the attendants checking him in are watching a show featuring the late Cameron Boyce. Boyce, who played one of Adam Sandler's sons in Grown Ups, as well as its sequel Grown Ups 2, passed away in July of 2019.

• Happy's sons are all named after famous hockey players: Gordie (Howe), Wayne (Gretzky), Bobby (Orr) and Terry (O'Reilly).

• At the first U.S. Bank Tour Championship golf tournament, when Oscar, (Bad Bunny) chugs a beer bong in the crowd, a noticeable gentlemen is dressed in Rodney Dangerfield's attire from Caddyshack. (Red pants, striped shirt & a white hat). An homage to the first golf comedy.

• Happy Gilmore 2 pays homage to its predecessor. While many clips and characters from the original film appear in flashbacks, Carl Weathers (as Chubbs), Frances Bay (Grandma Gilmore), and Bob Barker all get nods in a scene where Happy and Shooter cross paths at a cemetery. Given that the actors who portrayed these three staples of the first film are all deceased, highlighting their characters' names on their respective tombstones provides them a pointed sendoff.

• Received 47 million views in its opening weekend, the most of any Netflix film, surpassing Carry-On (2024), with 42 million views.

• Will Zalatoris acts as himself, who is revealed to be Happy's Waterbury caddy from the first movie. Although the role was originated by Jared Van Snellenberg, he was recast and written for the sequel specifically for Will due to online comparisons of the pro golfer to the character.