Happy Gilmore 2is finally here after almost three decades, and it features several exciting callbacks and Easter eggs that will reward long-time fans of the original movie. There are so manyfunny jokes inHappy Gilmore 2that remind audiences why Adam Sandler is such a prolific comic actor, but the film also has a touching sentimentality that pays homage to the original.
The sequel takes place ten years after Sandler’s protagonist has left the golfing circuit, ashe decides to step out of retirement to help pay for his daughter’s tuitionat a prestigious ballet academy in Paris. Much like the original movie,Happy Gilmore 2is filled with cameosfrom both acclaimed actors and real-life athletes - and some of these characters have interesting ties to the original movie.
10Happy’s Happy Place Grows Up
The Golfer Finds A More Mature Inner Peace
InHappy Gilmore, there’s a recurring joke that Happy needs to go to his “happy place” in order to calm himself down and prepare for those major game-winning moments. Originally, this happy place is a sunny golf course filled with slot machines, beer, and Virginia Venit in lingerie. In the sequel,his happy place has grown up alongside him.
Instead of the immature pleasures of his youth, Happy dreams of his late wife, who chastises him for ever having such a juvenile happy place. It’s a touching way ofbringing back this trope from the original movie while also developing Happy as a character.
9The “Happy Gilmore Swing”
Happy Still Hasn’t Learned How To Swing Conventionally
Sandler always brings his unique brand of physical comedy to his movies, and that’s no different inHappy Gilmore. His character has a very unique way of driving a golf ball,running up to it and swinging the club like a hockey stick. It’s a brilliant visual gag, and it’s clearly become one of the character’s most recognizable assets inHappy Gilmore 2.
When Happy golfs alongside Margaret Qualley and Eric André’s characters at the beginning ofHappy Gilmore 2,it’s this distinctive drive that ultimately makes them recognize him despite the half-hearted disguise. While it seems like a minor character trait at first, it’s small details like this that makeHappy Gilmore 2such a great, entertaining comedy.
8Shooter McGavin Still Wants That Gold Jacket
The Golfer Hasn’t Lost Sight Of His Prize
Shooter McGavin is the main antagonist ofHappy Gilmore, and the sequel somehow manages to make the rivalry between these two golfers even more extreme. It’s revealed fairly early in the movie thatMcGavin has spent the majority of his later life in a psychiatric institution- and he’s never given up his dream of getting the gold jacket.
Although Shooter and Happy manage to work together to defeat the Maxi Golfers inHappy Gilmore 2’s ending, the character still resents Sandler’s protagonist for earning the gold jacket in the original movie’s conclusion. However, the funniest differencenowis thatHappy doesn’t seem too interested in the gold jacket making Shooter’s desperation even sillier.
7Eminem Calls Happy A Jackass
The Rapper Has One Of The Sequel’s Best Cameos
ThroughoutHappy Gilmore, it’s a known fact thatSandler’s protagonist doesn’t take well to being insulted. He clearly has anger issues, and he’s been known on several occasions to take these feelings out on whoever’s closest to him. In the first movie, it’s Joe Flaherty’s character who most frequently gets a rise out of Happy by calling him a jackass right before his most important drives.
Happy Gilmore 2introduces Eminem as the son of Flaherty’s character, who continues his father’s legacy by jeering at Happy from the sidelines of the Maxi Golf tournament. Not only is this a really fun cameo that results in one of the film’s funniest moments, but tying it back to an original character fromHappy Gilmoreis a nice and subtle detail.
6Like Father, Like Sons
Happy Passed His Anger Issues Down To His Kids
As mentioned, Happy clearly has some anger issues that make him a very unpredictable player on the golf course. This tends to cause some trouble for the protagonist; throughout the first movie, he can be found throttling his caddy, screaming at his golf balls, and reportedly stabbing people with ice skates.
Thankfully, Happy’s daughter Vienna (who’s played by Adam Sandler’s real-life daughter Sunny), doesn’t seem to have acquired this trait.
Unsurprisingly, this trait seems to have been passed down to Happy’s children.Each of Happy’s sons has the same propensity for violence, often fighting with their neighbors or using human dummies as punching bags. Thankfully, Happy’s daughter Vienna (who’splayed by Adam Sandler’s real-life daughter Sunny), doesn’t seem to have acquired this trait.
5Hal Returns As Happy’s AA Meeting Leader
Ben Stiller’s Character Has A New Look And New Job
Following the tragic death of his wife,Happy decides to start attending AA meetingsto deal with his self-destructive behavior and alcoholism. But when he arrives at the first meeting, he soon realizes that things aren’t going to get any better when Ben Stiller’s exploitative Hal, the manager of Happy’s grandmother’s nursing home, walks through the door.
Stiller’s character is one of the highlights of the originalHappy Gilmore, so it’s no surprise that Sandler wanted him to return for this long-awaited sequel. Although Hal ultimately gets his comeuppance,he spends much ofHappy Gilmore 2displaying the same selfish and exploitative behaviorthat made him a surprise antagonist in the first movie.
4Happy Can’t Stop Accidentally Killing People
His Wife Is His Next Unintended Target
One of the funniest running jokes inHappy Gilmoreis the idea thatpeople keep dying in freak accidents around Sandler’s protagonist. First, his father is killed by an unexpected hockey puck to the head, and secondly, Chubbs Peterson falls out a window after Happy presents him with the head of an alligator.
This running joke continues inHappy Gilmore 2, as returning characterVirginia Venit is killed barely ten minutes into the film.She’s knocked on the head by one of Happy’s legendary drives, and Happy spends the rest of the film struggling to come to terms with her untimely death.
3Bob Barker Is A Boss In Happy’s Video Game
The Video Game Recreates Several Scenes From The First Movie
The beginning ofHappy Gilmore 2really establishes the idea that Happy has become a major celebrity following his game-changing victory in the first movie. Not only was he an answer onJeopardy!, but it’s also revealed thatthere was an in-universe video game made about him, which includes some key scenes fromHappy Gilmore.
The video game includes a reference to Bob Barker’s role inHappy Gilmore; more specifically, the scene in whichBarker punches Sandler’s protagonist for disrupting the golf tournament. Barker unfortunately passed away in August 2023, so this is a very touching way of paying homage to the prolific entertainer.
2Chubbs Peterson’s Son Is A Mini-Golf Genius
Happy Seeks Advice From His Late Mentor’s Son
Followingthe passing of Carl Weathersin 2024, much ofHappy Gilmore 2’s story had to be changed to work around the character’s absence. He appeared in the original movie as Chubbs Peterson, an amateur golfer who trains Happy and accompanies him throughout the tour. Although he’s not in the sequel,Weathers gets a touching tribute inHappy Gilmore 2.
Instead of turning to his old friend Chubbs for help getting back into the golf game,Happy pays a visit to Peterson’s son, who turns out to be a mini-golf genius. This new character is a really fun way of paying homage to Weathers’ involvement in the series without making the tribute too intrusive.
1Will Zalatoris Is Happy’s Caddy
The Pro Golfer Is Retroactively Revealed To Have A History With Happy
Another member ofHappy Gilmore 2’s castthat took audiences by surprise is Will Zalatoris, the American golfer who won the PGA Tour in 2022. However, he’s one of the few celebrity cameos inHappy Gilmore 2whoisn’tportraying themselves; instead,Zalatoris is revealed to be the caddy whom Happy throttledduring his first year on the circuit.
For years, audiences have joked that the young caddy fromHappy Gilmore(played by Jared Van Snellenberg) bears a striking resemblance to Zalatoris, so the golfer’s appearance in the sequel is clearly playing off this likeness. But it’s not just a fun reference - it’s also a really effective way of mapping Happy’s journey and showing how much he’s grown sinceHappy Gilmore.
