Adam Sandler Movies
14 Funniest Adam Sandler Movies
Adam Sandler is one of the finest comedians of his generation. Adam Sandler movies consistently make a splash at the box-office, with a combined gross of more than $2 billion. He first rose to prominence as a cast member of Saturday Night Live in the early 90s before making the transition to the big screen.
These days, Mr. Sandler is making movies for Netflix after signing a 4-movie deal with the streaming company in 2014, and then extending that to another 4 movies in 2017.
Here are the 14 most memorable Adam Sandler movies (in no particular order). A list of all his movies can be found at the end.
1. The Wedding Singer (1998)
This was the first team-up of Sandler and Barrymore, and it was a smashing success. This romantic comedy only had a budget of $18 million but when on to gross $123 million worldwide. It tells the story of Robbie, a wedding singer and Julia, a waitress who are both engaged to be married to other people. But destiny has other plans for them, as they discover that they are meant for each other.
The film was eventually turned into a Broadway musical with the same title in 2006.
2. Grown Ups (2010)
Coming to terms with the fact that he could no longer play the dim-witted young man who never graduated from adolescence, Sandler took on the role of dim-witted father who never graduated from adolescence. What made this movie work, though, was the ensemble cast of comedians.Chris Rock, Kevin James, and Sandler-regulars, David Spade and Rob Schneider. This combination worked and earned over $162 million domestically.
The story is about 5 kids who grew up together meeting up for the first time in many years. They meet each others’ families, and work through some unresolved feelings from the times they spent growing up.
3. Happy Gilmore (1996)
This is the movie that made Sandler a legitimate Hollywood star. This was the first of a number of collaborations between Sandler and director Dennis Dugan. In the movie, Sandler plays the title character who is unsuccessful at ice hockey but discovers that he has a talent for golf. The film was also successful at the box-office, earning around $40 million worldwide.
4. Mr. Deeds (2002)
Sandler turns a solid performance in this remake of the original. And who can turn down the effervescent Winona Ryder? This film marked Sandler’s shift to playing characters who were starting to get a bit older. In this dumbed-down remake, Longfellow Deeds is loved by all in his small town. When he learns that he’s inherited billions from his uncle, this small-town hero has to learn to adjust to life in the big city. And cope with the board of directors in a Fortune 500 company, and its ill-meaning second-in-command who is out to take it all from Deeds. Another solid box office return of over $126 million.
5. The Waterboy (1998)
Despite the fact that this movie’s funniest moments were all given away in the trailer, The Waterboy was still a fun ride to watch. Sandler plays Bobby Boucher, the local high school football team’s waterboy who is discovered by the coach for his ability to tackle harder than a Mack truck. But with his success in football come challenges at home, in love, and with his teammates. Another solid performance bringing in over $160 million.
6. Billy Madison (1995)
An inept failure at school and life, Billy Madison has to prove to his father that while he acts like a pre-pubescent child, he’s not an idiot. Something Sandler’s been proving to us since the 1980s. Considered a success at the time, even though it earned only $25 million at the box office, this movie is considered a cult classic in some circles, and you can often hear quotes from it.
7. Reign Over Me (2007)
Sandler may have made a name for himself as a comedian, but he can also do light drama flicks from time to time. This movie with Don Cheadle is a perfect example. Cheadle plays a man who lost his family in the September 11 New York attacks and runs into an old college buddy, played by Sandler. Cheadle’s character would learn how to overcome his grief with the help of Sandler’s character.
This movie was a huge flop, though, as it only grossed $22 million.
8. Punch Drunk Love (2002)
This is a romantic-comedy movie that stars Adam Sandler opposite Emily Watson. It was written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. The movie earned rave reviews for Sandler, as critics applauded him for his performance in this flick. But it was also a huge disappointment at the box office with a measly $24.5 million gross.
9. Hotel Transylvania (2012)
Sandler lent his voice for this animated motion picture. He voices Count Dracula who owns a hotel called Hotel Transylvania where various monsters can take a rest from human civilization. This was a big hit, grossing nearly $360 million at the box office.
10. 50 First Dates (2004)
Sandler teams up with Drew Barrymore in this romantic-comedy about a man who finally finds the girl of his dreams. It turns out though that the girl, played by Barrymore, has short-term memory loss and forgets him the day after their date. Sandler and Barrymore show that their chemistry dating back from their The Wedding Singer days was still there as the movie grossed nearly $200 million at the box office.
According to reports, Sandler and Barrymore consider this movie as one of their personal favorites.
11. Blended (2014)
The third team-up of Sandler and Barrymore, Blended was still able to rake in $126 million at the box-office. But unlike the first two Sandler-Barrymore features, it was slammed by the critics for the performance of its cast as well as formulaic plot. It tells of the story of two single parents who were paired in a blind date. Nothing comes out of that date, but the two find themselves stuck at a resort. Eventually, the two would hit it off.
The movie also has former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal making a cameo appearance.
12. Spanglish (2004)
In this movie, Sandler is a celebrated chef with an insecure wife. Their lives start to change when they take in a woman and her daughter who are immigrants from Mexico. While it earned rave reviews for its portrayal of family problems especially among migrants, the movie bombed at the box office with a gross of just $55 million.
13. Just Go With It (2011)
Dugan directs Sandler again in this romantic-comedy movie that also stars Jennifer Aniston and Nicole Kidman. While the motion picture received a lot of flak from critics, it was a box-office success taking in more than $200 million.
14. Big Daddy (1999)
With a worldwide gross of $234 million, this is one of the biggest Adam Sandler movies of all-time. Again directed by Dugan, Sandler stars with the Sprouse twins, Cole and Dylan. Sandler plays a lazy law school graduate who adopts a kid to impress his girlfriend, played by Kristy Swanson. But he eventually becomes the foster father of the kid. This was the last film of Sandler before he put up his own production company, Happy Madison Productions named after two of Sandler’s early hits, Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison.
All Adam Sandler Movies
| Movie Title | Year Released |
|---|---|
| Hotel Transylvania 4 | 2021 |
| Uncut Gems | 2019 |
| Murder Mystery | 2019 |
| Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation | 2018 |
| The Week Of | 2018 |
| The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) | 2017 |
| Sandy Wexler | 2017 |
| The Do-Over | 2016 |
| The Ridiculous 6 | 2015 |
| Pixels | 2015 |
| Hotel Transylvania 2 | 2015 |
| Top Five | 2014 |
| The Cobbler | 2014 |
| Men, Women & Children | 2014 |
| Blended | 2014 |
| Grown Ups 2 | 2013 |
| That's My Boy | 2012 |
| Hotel Transylvania | 2012 |
| Jack and Jill | 2011 |
| Zookeeper | 2011 |
| Just Go with It | 2011 |
| Grown Ups | 2010 |
| Funny People | 2009 |
| You Don't Mess with the Zohan | 2008 |
| Bedtime Stories | 2008 |
| Reign Over Me | 2007 |
| I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry | 2007 |
| Click | 2006 |
| The Longest Yard | 2005 |
| Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo | 2005 |
| Spanglish | 2004 |
| 50 First Dates | 2004 |
| Pauly Shore Is Dead | 2003 |
| Couch (TV Short) | 2003 |
| Anger Management | 2003 |
| The Hot Chick | 2002 |
| Punch-Drunk Love | 2002 |
| Mr. Deeds | 2002 |
| Eight Crazy Nights | 2002 |
| The Animal | 2001 |
| Little Nicky | 2000 |
| Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo | 1999 |
| Big Daddy | 1999 |
| The Wedding Singer | 1998 |
| The Waterboy | 1998 |
| Dirty Work | 1998 |
| Happy Gilmore | 1996 |
| Bulletproof | 1996 |
| Billy Madison | 1995 |
| Mixed Nuts | 1994 |
| Airheads | 1994 |
| Coneheads | 1993 |
| Shakes the Clown | 1991 |
| Going Overboard | 1989 |
