Credit: Uncut Gems
Who could forget Adam Sandler’s unforgettable turn as Howard Ratner in Uncut Gems? The 56-year-old actor has always been a talented name thanks to roles like The Wedding Singer and Punch-Drunk Love; however, Sandler’s career had been buried underneath a string of terrible comedies leading up to Uncut Gems. Believe it or not, the actor originally turned down the role in 2015, but Benny and Josh were determined to get the actor and ultimately did following a meet at the Cannes Film Festival.
The rest is history at that point, with Sandler proving to the world that he’s an excellent performer when he’s given the right script. Of course, Benny and Josh further established their names as directors, and shortly after the incredible awards run that sadly didn’t see either the Safdie Brothers or Sandler receive Oscar nominations, the stock of the Safdie Brothers surely rose within the film industry.
Fast forward to 2022, and Deadline has confirmed that Sandler and the two filmmakers will reunite for an upcoming feature. The plot details are scarce, but the information about the untitled Safdie brothers project is “likely set in the world of high-end card collecting.” Josh and Benny are still in the pre-production phase of the feature and won’t start shooting until the second quarter of 2023.
Credit: Uncut Gems
Sandler actually revealed the news on Entertainment Weekly by stating he was “going to do another movie with the Safdie brothers,” though he didn’t offer any more details regarding the project, “They’re working hard on it,” Sandler said about the Safdie brothers. “Their work ethic is bananas. They’re always working, always writing, always thinking. I don’t know what I can tell you, but it’s gonna be very exciting. It’s different. But I don’t want them to ever say, ‘What the hell did you tell him that for?’ So I’ll just let them talk [about it].”
This is definitely an exciting development, as the pairing was a perfect combination of Uncut Gems. While it wasn’t surprising that Sandler pulled out such a gritty and raw performance in the feature, it was Josh and Benny who brought out the excellent balance and dimension within Howard’s character. While some aren’t happy with the ending, it was a rewarding experience that continuously smacked audiences with a dose of reality.
The unnamed feature is the first film for the Safdie brothers following Uncut Gems. However, Sandler has been busy working on other projects as the actor is coming off another serious role in a Netflix film, Hustle. The film follows Stanley Sugerman, a down-and-out basketball scout who discovers a gifted athlete aboard and brings him back with his team’s approval. Thus far, Hustle has gotten strong critical reviews as the feature is riding high with an excellent rotten tomatoes score of 93%.
Credit: Uncut Gems
However, that isn’t the only project for Sandler, as the veteran currently has Spaceman, You Are SO Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah, and Murder Mystery 2 in the post-production phase, though neither of those projects has a confirmed release date.
Should Sandler give another tremendous performance in the next Safdie brothers’ film, hopefully, the Academy voters will show him some respect by giving him the nomination he should’ve gotten for Uncut Gems. This isn’t a confirmed rumor, but there were reports from an unnamed Academy voter that Sandler didn’t get an Oscar nomination for the Safdie feature because the voters weren’t particularly happy with the string of terrible films that the actor had been producing.
It also didn’t help that Sandler threatened to make another terrible movie if he didn’t get an Oscar nomination. Seriously though, is it even possible to top the godawful Jack & Jill? Let’s hope not.
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