Adam Sandler Reveals How Bob Barker Was Cast in Happy Gilmore
31In 1996's sports comedy film, Happy Gilmore has many iconic moments, but one of the most unexpected appearances in the film was of longtime TV and game show host Bob Barker appeared as himself to not just play golf with Adam Sandler's titular character but also throw fists with him. It is one of those castings that worked great in the film but makes you wonder how the whole thing came about. In a recent interview with Collider's own Steven Weintraub, Sandler provided some insight on how the whole deal with Barker came together.
The recent interview with Sandler and Jennifer Aniston was for the upcoming comedy film Murder Mystery 2 on Netflix, which is now streaming and stars the duo. During the interview, Weintraub brings up the shirt that he is wearing, which depicts a photo of Barker's face from the scene in Happy Gilmore where he and Gilmore get into a fight. After the actor provides some context of what is happening in the scene shown on the shirt, he is asked if he remembers the process that went into Barker's casting, to which Sandler explained that the role was originally written for someone else: fellow longtime TV host and announcer Ed McMahon. When the plan for McMahon's inclusion fell through, the team jokingly wondered if Barker would do it. though they didn't expect him to, they brought him in when he showed interest. Sandler even goes on to explain that the main reason Barker joined the cast was that he wanted to be able to get into a fistfight.
"We… and Bob knows this. We initially wrote it for Ed McMahon. Ed McMahon said he was busy and we, we were, we were like, imagine if Bob Barker did it, he'll never do it. Next thing you know, Bob Barker, whose neighbor was Chuck Norris at the time and Chuck and Bob used to spar, was like, ‘Yeah, if I get to fight, if I get to throw punches, I'm doing it.’
The Legacy of Bob Barker
Barker's appearance in Happy Gilmore is just a small detail in his long, storied, and celebrated TV career. The 19-Daytime Emmy Award winner is most well known for being the host of The Price is Right for over three decades from 1972 to 2007 and even has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. When it comes to his appearance in the Sandler-starring film, the two have reunited several times to recreate the scene over the years. Despite the two always "fighting," Sandler did confirm to Weintraub that they "get along now."
Murder Mystery 2 is now streaming on Netflix. You can check out our clip of Sandler discussing Barker's role in Happy Gilmore in the player above.
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