I know I speak for many of us when I say Adam Sandler’s movies were a staple of my childhood. From Billy Madison to Happy Gilmore to The Water Boy to The Wedding Singer (the second most underrated comedy behind The Cable Guy), I still tune into Old Testament Sandler movies whenever they’re on TNT and can recite every line: “Karrrrrrl, GOOD TO SEEEE YOU!”
Since then, we’ve had to suffer through atrocities such as Jack and Jill, Grown Ups 2, The Cobbler, and Pixels. While Sandler still holds a special place in my heart, it’s not lost on me that Sandler has strayed from the formula that made me fall in love with his brand of comedy.
Sandler’s highly lucrative movie career was preluded by his five-year stint on Saturday Night Live from which he and cast member Chris Farley were fired in 1995.
Speaking to Daily Beast, Sandler’s explanation for the termination was vague, likely implying that there were some behind-the-scenes dissension that accompanied the show’s sinking ratings:
Yes, we were [fired]. We kind of quit at the same time as being fired. It was the end of the run for us. The fact that me and him got fired? Who knows. We were on it for a few years, had our run, and everything happens for a reason. We kind of understood because we did our thing. It hurt a lot at the time because we were young and didn’t know where we were going, but it all worked out.
When speaking with former SNL cast member Norm McDonald (who left the show in 1997) on the “Norm Macdonald Live” podcast, Sandler adamantly dismissed the possibility of hosting SNL:
“Why should I?” Sandler replied when asked why he won’t host. “I don’t know how good it would be. I’m slow now.”
“There are guys who love doing it — who are great at doing it,” Sandler told Macdonald. “I just don’t know how good I’d be doing it. I did what I can do on the show.”
Sandler would kill it as a host and he knows it. I can’t help but think that the real reason for his disinterest isn’t lack of belief in himself, but due to burned bridges with Lorne Michaels and SNL’s powers that be. Sad.