Go to Your New Happy Place with “Happy Gilmore 2” Trailer

Joining the illustrious ranks of Grown Ups and Murder Mystery, Happy Gilmore becomes just the third live-action Adam Sandler film to get a sequel. The comedian has made an art out of getting major studios and streamers to fund his vacations with family and friends. Now, he returns to the role that made him a movie star.

Arriving nearly 30 years after the original film, in which Sandler played the titular golfer, Gilmore once again returns to the course with his trademark drive. And if they're still alive, the old gang is here too, including Julie Bowen, Christopher Macdonald, and longtime Sandler pal Allen Covert. Even Ben Stiller, who played a sadistic orderly at a retirement home, is back. Newcomers include Bad Bunny as Happy's new caddy (sure, why not) and a host of real-life golfers, including Jordan Spieth and living meme John Daly. Expect even more product placement than the original.

So why might this sequel fare better than, say, Coming 2 America? Well, original writers Sandler and Tim Herlihy writing the script. And What We Do in the Shadows directorial MVP Kyle Newacheck is at the helm. Sandler's movies, especially his work for Netflix, is hit or miss. Let's hope this one doesn't get stuck in the sand trap.

Happy Gilmore 2 arrives exclusively on Netflix on July 25.

About Kip Mooney

Like many film critics born during and after the 1980s, my hero is Roger Ebert. The man was already the best critic in the nation when he won the Pulitzer in 1975, but his indomitable spirit during and after his recent battle with cancer keeps me coming back to read not only his reviews but his insightful commentary on the everyday. But enough about a guy you know a lot about. I knew I was going to be a film critic—some would say a snob—in middle school, when I had to voraciously defend my position that The Royal Tenenbaums was only a million times better than Adam Sandler’s remake of Mr. Deeds. From then on, I would seek out Wes Anderson’s films and avoid Sandler’s like the plague. Still, I like to think of myself as a populist, and I’ll be just as likely to see the next superhero movie as the next Sundance sensation. The thing I most deplore in a movie is laziness. I’d much rather see movies with big ambitions try and fail than movies with no ambitions succeed at simply existing. I’m also a big advocate of fun-bad movies like The Room and most of Nicolas Cage’s work. In the past, I’ve written for The Dallas Morning News and the North Texas Daily, which I edited for a semester. I also contributed to Dallas-based Pegasus News, which in the circle of life, is now part of The Dallas Morning News, where I got my big break in 2007. Eventually, I’d love to write and talk about film full-time, but until that’s a viable career option, I work as an auditor for Wells Fargo. I hope to one day meet my hero, go to the Toronto International Film Festival, and compete on Jeopardy. Until then, I’m excited to share my love of film with you.