Adam Sandler picks up the club 29 years later in a long-awaited sequel to Happy Gilmore (1996), which is not as good as the original, but it is still a great, hilarious film that adds a lot to the franchise.

Happy Gilmore 2 was released on July 25, 2025, exclusively on Netflix and amassed 46.7 million views in the first three days, making it the biggest U.S. opening weekend for a Netflix film. This shows how many people were waiting for this movie, and it satisfied the long-time fans as well as new viewers.

The numerous celebrity cameos kind of made the movie feel like a pop culture gimmick more than a movie that you can just get lost in.

​The movie has over 60 celebrity cameos. These cameos are a constant reminder of the real world. Watching a movie should feel like watching a different world or reality rather than watching real life. Many fans felt that the movie should have focused more on the story than the cameos.

On the other hand, some Saint Paul’s students thought cameos were a good idea. “I feel like Happy Gilmore 2 is ahead of its time because having that many famous athletes and people who have never acted in general playing their parts so well really gave the film a special comedic edge over other comedy films,” said Saint Paul’s sophomore Benjy Johnson.

​The cameos were a good idea, but they just didn’t feel right for an Adam Sandler movie. Adam Sandler movies usually feel like their own universe. It is just difficult to get used to a new style of movie when all of Sandler’s beloved, old movies have the same certain and unique charm and soul that every Sandler film has.

After watching Sandler’s other amazing films countless times, watching and adapting to a new movie with a new idea and style is really difficult. In general, it is really hard, despite how good the product might be, for a long-time fan to adapt to an actor or artist’s new style when they love the original style and the original style is the reason for being a fan of that person in the first place.

​The trick is watching the movie without trying to compare it to the original movie or other Sandler films. When an actor has been around for a long time, you have to put nostalgia aside to appreciate their new works.

Happy Gilmore (1996) is one of the best comedy movies of all time. Many people were nervous that the new movie would take away from or ruin the first one. Happy Gilmore 2 actually added a lot to the franchise. The movie felt completely different. The entire goal is kind of the same, which is Happy playing golf because he needs money. The whole reason for Happy playing golf is completely different, and the story is entirely different as well.

Happy Gilmore is 58 years old and has four sons and a daughter now. He needs $300,000 to send his daughter to ballet school and has to play golf again. He has lost all of his skill, so he needs to build up his skill as an underdog.

It is impressive how Sandler even made a new movie because it didn’t really seem like there could be another movie after the ending of Happy Gilmore (1996). The ending of Happy Gilmore felt like the end of Happy’s story. People probably wondered what Happy’s life would be like after the first movie. Making a sequel to a movie that was released 29 years ago is really impressive.

​The story is amazing. It was cool how Happy Gilmore aged with Sandler. The whole premise of Happy playing golf for his daughter to go to ballet school was a great idea. The first ten minutes of the movie were so fast-paced, eventful, and unexpected. These unexpected moments set up the film’s comedic and unserious tone. The movie was just so fun and unserious. 

Happy is still an underdog in this movie. He had a nice car, a nice house, and a nice life, but he lost everything after starting a fight with a repossession worker, who he thought was a thief stealing his car.  

Sandler is always amazing when playing characters who are underdogs. 

​Happy has to play golf again after he lost his job working at a supermarket. The traditional golfers are worried about this new alternative golf league called Maxi Golf. They have crazy courses, fancy clubs, and they are anti-traditional golf. 

Most fans believe that Maxi Golf is a parody of the real-life golf league, LIV Golf.

The movie should have just stuck to having regular golfers and golf leagues. The Maxi golf just felt unrealistic and unnecessary. They should have kept it like the original movie, with just normal golf. It felt like the directors thought they had to do something different this time and adjust to the new “times.” A lot of sequels do this, where they feel like they have to have a modern “twist” when they should just keep the original charm.

The last 30 minutes of the movie felt a little too silly and childish. It was the traditional golfers competing against the Maxi golfers. It felt like the competition dragged on for so long. It was also kind of obvious that the traditional golfers would win at the end, and Happy would have a happy ending. Of course, Happy wins the competition at the end and sends his daughter to ballet school.

Apart from this, the story was really funny and entertaining.

Happy Gilmore 2 really shows a new side of Happy. In the first movie, Happy was always just mad and funny. He is still mad and funny in this movie, but he also shows responsibility by getting a job, is sad about losing his wife, and is more mature in general. The character development of Happy is perfect because the protagonist actually grows into adulthood.

The movie is really different from the first one, which is great because sequels are often a cash grab that are a repeat of the original movie. Happy isn’t initially really good at golf like he was in the first movie. He is bad in the beginning, and he worked his way back up to being good. This made the movie feel like its own story rather than just having the same story as the first one.

Saint Paul’s sophomore, Charlie Kingrea thought the movie perfectly blended nostalgia and innovation. “You still get Happy’s temper and him smashing drives, but it throws in fresh rivals, so it does not feel like a copy and paste. I do not think it is as funny as the first, but it was good,” said Kingrea.

Happy Gilmore 2 has real life golfers acting in the movie. The movie has famous stars like Scottie Scheffler, Rory Mcllroy, and Bryson DeChambeau.

The movie also has a lot of the original cast. It has returning actors and actresses like Ben Stiller, Christopher McDonald, Julie Bowen, and many more. It is really impressive that Sandler brought back all these original actors and actresses. This really shows that everyone involved with this movie was really passionate about it.

​​The original movie felt like a different world, unlike the new movie. The new one didn’t really capture the same charm as the original. It has its own special charm, though. You can tell everybody who acted in the movie genuinely had fun and enjoyed making the movie.

​The movie is hilarious.

Happy’s family adds a lot of comedic value to this movie. He has four sons, and they are all just like Happy because they are all funny, aggressive, and love hockey. They always go crazy for their dad when he makes a good swing. There was a really cool reference to the first movie. The movie shows all his sons at their jobs, and they are doing the same poses and dances that Happy did at all his different jobs at the beginning of the original movie.

​Even though the cameos were not the right fit for this movie, they still provide a lot of hilarious moments like Bad Bunny covering Travis Kelce in honey, Eminem fighting alligators because Happy’s sons threw him in the water, and John Daly living in Happy’s garage.

The movie received a 63% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes. Adam Sandler made this movie for the fans. He didn’t care about pleasing the critics.

Happy Gilmore 2 just feels like Sandler and his friends having fun.

​Adam Sandler made this movie because he genuinely wanted to. He does not need money or the approval of critics. Sandler offered the cameos the usual acting payments for their roles, but a lot of the celebrities turned down the money. The celebrities were Adam’s friends and people he wanted to be in the movie. 

Even though Happy Gilmore 2 includes a lot of unnecessary modern gimmicks, it still exceeded expectations and set the standard for how a sequel should be.

​Featured Image Photo Credit: IGN

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