Adam Sandler gives self-deprecating speech at Gotham Awards

If you had been told 25 years ago that the guy yelling at golf balls and pitting shampoo vs. conditioner would be on the awards stage, you wouldn’t have believed it– and even Adam Sandler appears to know he’s an oddball choice.

At Monday’s Gotham Independent Film Awards, Adam Sandler was honored with the Performer Tribute Award, a sort of lifetime achievement. During his speech, the Sandman took the opportunity to poke fun at some of his reputation, his less prestigious honors and, why not, Rob Schneider.

Under the guise that his daughters wrote the speech, Sandler read, “It means a lot to [our dad] seeing that most of the awards on his trophy shelf are shaped like popcorn buckets, blimps, or fake mini-Oscars that say ‘Father of the Year’, which he sadly purchased himself while wandering in a self-pitying fog through the head shops of Times Square.” For the record, Sandler has five MTV Movie Awards and 10 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards.

Sandler also mocked the reputation of his movies, saying, “People in prison need movies too, and TBS needs content to show between all them f*cking basketball games.” Co-star David Spade has frequently joked that the Grown Ups movies have kept TBS’ lights on. Further, Sandler spotlighted one of his most beloved ‘90s flicks, Big Daddy, saying it “paid for this f*cking house and your grandma’s house and your other f*cking grandma’s house, Rob Schneider’s f*cking house, and your braces, and Rob Schneider’s f*cking braces.”

Sandler also used the “goofy Southern accent you do all your dumb speeches in.” You know the one.

The Safdie Brothers presented the award to Adam Sandler, who earned the best reviews of his career for his performance in their Uncut Gems. He is set to team up with them again for a yet-to-be-titled project.