Netflix is tap, tap, tapping into one of Adam Sandler’s most beloved characters, Happy Gilmore, for a sequel to the Saturday Night Live alum’s 1996 comedy hole-in-one! On Wednesday, Netflix announced Happy Gilmore 2 during its Upfront presentation, confirming Adam Sandler’s return as the ill-tempered hockey player turned professional golfer.
Happy Gilmore star Christopher McDonald was the first to say Adam Sandler is developing Happy Gilmore 2 in April. In the original comedy, McDonald plays Happy’s nemesis on the golf course, Shooter McGavin. During an interview with Audacy’s 92.3 The Fan, McDonald said he recently spoke with Sandler, who surprised him with a sequel script for the duo’s 1996 sports comedy.
“I saw Adam [Sandler] about two weeks ago, and he says to me, ‘McDonald, you’re gonna love this,'” McDonald said. “I said, ‘What?’ He says, ‘How about that,’ and he shows me the first draft of ‘Happy Gilmore 2.’ Maybe you should cut that out [of this audio] because I don’t wanna be a liar, but he did show me that, and I thought, ‘Well, that would be awesome.’ So, it’s in the works. Fans demand it, dammit!”
Happy Gilmore focuses on Happy, a hockey player with anger management issues who, with the help of golf pro-Chubbs Peterson (Carl Weathers), joins the PGA Tour to earn enough money to save his grandmother’s house. Happy isn’t precisely a conventional golfer, and his aggressive, slapshot style of play clashes with PGA favorite Shooter McGavin, a self-important asshat in desperate need of a kick in the golf balls. As Happy and Shooter prepare to face one another for the top prize, Shooter uses every dirty trick in the book to keep his title and sabotage Happy’s possible victory.
Adam Sandler is the only star confirmed to return so far. With any luck, Julie Bowen could return to the course as Virginia Venit, the Public Relations Director for the PGA Tour and Happy’s love interest in Happy Gilmore. Sadly, several stars from the first film have passed, including the legendary Carl Weathers, Bob Barker, Joe Flarety, Frances Bay, and Richard Kiel. We’ll be keeping an eye on this project’s development. In the meantime, let us know if you’re excited about Happy Gilmore 2 in the comments below.