EXCLUSIVE Christopher McDonald makes shock admission about relationship with Happy Gilmore costar Adam Sandler
McDonald starred opposite Sandler as arrogant star golfer Shooter McGavin in the beloved movie, released in 1996, and has reprised the role for the hotly anticipated sequel, which is due to land on Netflix next month.
Ahead of its arrival on the platform on July 25, the actor, 70, spoke exclusively to DailyMail.com about what it's really like working with Hollywood titan Sandler, 58, as well as who would win in a real-life tournament.
'We never played golf together,' McDonald confessed upon being asked who the better golfer is out of the two of them. 'Isn't that interesting?
'We've hit balls off the tee, we've gotten a lot of putting, a lot of chipping, but never an actual game.'
Taking a second to consider who would come out on top, McDonald replied: 'I'm pretty sure I would own him.
'He's a great athlete, don't get me wrong. He's a heck of a good basketball player, he's got game, he's got the passes, so that's good. But golf is a hard game, and I don't know if he plays enough of it to be good.'
Almost immediately after delivering his impassioned fighting talk, McDonald u-turned.
Revising his answer, he added: 'I think we're probably even, to be honest with you. That's a safe, easy answer thing to say. We would have fun out there.'
Happy Gilmore 2 began production in March 2024 after Netflix announced it had officially greenlit the movie.
But McDonald revealed he had been angling for a sequel for almost two decades before the streamer got involved.
'I've been that guy going, "let's make a sequel" for about 30 years,' he said. 'I did have my moments of running into Adam and saying [clicks fingers] maybe 15 years ago.
'It would have been great to have all the people still with us.'
McDonald said Sandler showed him the first page of the new sequel script during a visit to see one of his stand-up comedy shows. 'There it was, Happy Gilmore 2, and I was like "finally!"
'That was months and months ago, but it was great to see it in in action and it was so easy for me to fall right back into Shooter.'
Uncut Gems actor Sandler has made a conscious effort to cast his family members, including his wife Jackie Sandler, in many of his movies over the past two decades.
Jackie, 50, has appeared in several of Sandler's films, including 50 First Dates (2004), where she played a dentist, I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007), in which she was a teacher, and Grown Ups (2010), where she played Richie Minervini's on-screen wife.
And of course, Happy Gilmore 2 will be no different, with Sandler's other half confirmed to be making a cameo alongside their 19-year-old daughter, Sadie Sandler.
In a pointed moment during his conversation with DailyMail.com at Konnectgolf in Manhattan, McDonald took a moment to applaud Sandler for making the set of Happy Gilmore 2 a 'family affair.'
'He let me have my daughter in it in a scene,' he shared, referring to his 29-year-old actress daughter Rosie McDonald, whom he shares with his wife Lupe McDonald.
'It's a family affair when you work with Adam Sandler,' he enthused.
'And that is one of the strongest pieces that brings this whole thing together, that emotion and what you for your family and stepping up, because he starts out in a bad way and gets to a great way.'
Besides working hard on set, McDonald did get to spend some downtime with Sandler - although he quickly came to realize that the multi-hyphenated Hollywood star is a bit 'too famous.'
'We enjoyed going to the baseball games that were right in New York, we shot the film in Fiddler's Elbow, which is a great golf course in New Jersey, and we watched the Yankees and the Dodgers.
'It's never, never a bad time, but you know, he's too famous, let's be honest. He can't go anywhere, so he needs a guy like me, you know, just to make sure he's not getting hurt.'
Surprisingly, McDonald turned down the invitation to star in the original Happy Gilmore movie. At the time, he had just finished filming the 1994 action thriller, Fair Game, and wanted to spend some time at home.
'I hadn't seen my children and, I mean, I didn't want to be a bad dad,' he said. 'I had to play one more golf tournament, so I played golf, and we won, and I went, I wonder if the golf movie is still around.
'I went back up and Dennis Dugan, the director, gave me the script and I read it, and I thought it was hysterical. Long story short is I sat down with Adam, laughed for 40 minutes and said I've got to do this movie.
'So, they made it so I could bring my family up there and not live at the hotel and they'd keep them up in a separate place, and that made all the difference.'
Coming back for the sequel has been a lot of fun for McDonald, and he's been blown away by the acting abilities of all the cameo stars.
Besides the main cast – which includes the return of Modern Family's Julie Bowen – the new film features appearances from the likes of Eric André, Post Malone, Margaret Qualley, as well as professional golfers Keegan Bradley, John Daly, and Tony Finau.
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce is also among them.
'Well, I've got to say the man is a pretty good actor,' he praised of the Chiefs' tight end.
'He's very funny. I know him and his brother [Jason Kelce], who is very funny too, but yeah, he was just game to do anything and, you know, I hate him as a football player because he beats my team every year, but other than that, he's a really good guy too.
'We had a lot of laughs together.'
Referring to the professional golfers, McDonald added: 'Acting's not easy, so it was interesting to see how they would take on the thing.
'Some of them were easy breezy, like Bryson DeChambeau, really easy and Rory McIlroy, really easy.'
McDonald spoke to Daily Mail as part of Subway's exciting new Happy Gilmore Meal.
To celebrate the revival of this iconic partnership, Subway and Netflix are teaming up to give fans special access to one of their all-time favorite movies with the special meal, which will be available at its restaurants across the U.S. and Canada.
Starting July 10, Subway guests can make any combo or Meal of the Day a Happy Gilmore Meal for $1 more and receive one of four limited-edition collectible cups, featuring fan-favorite characters from the movie franchise.
Drawn by renowned sports illustrator, animator and director Mickey Duzyj, the four collectible cups celebrate include Happy Gilmore, Shooter McGavin, Hal L, and Happy's new caddie Oscar.
Every Happy Gilmore Meal includes limited-edition packaging that transports fans via QR code to Subway's Happy Place, an immersive digital experience inspired by Happy's iconic dream world and reimagined by Subway and Netflix.
Fans can also visit Subway's Happy Place at SubwaysHappyPlace.com to enjoy clips from the film, the chance at prizes and limited-edition merch, play games and more.
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