I’m a hugeAdam Sandlermovie fan, particularly his films from the ‘90s when he was just starting to form Happy Madison Productions. Chief among them isHappy Gilmore, one of his silliest comedies from that decade. It’s one of the few Sandler films that most people can agree is downright hilarious, even for those who don’t appreciate his usual comedic style.
Happy Gilmorepremiered almost 30 years ago in 1996. While the movie is ripe for a follow-up, the new trailer forHappy Gilmore 2,released during theNetflixTudum event on June 06, 2025, feels like it’s missing some magic. It’s tough to put my finger on why, but as someone who has been giddy about this film and its release,the trailer didn’t leave me wanting more.
What the Trailer Shows About ‘Happy Gilmore 2’
Until now,Happy Gilmore 2hasn’t revealed much about the plot beyond the fact that it will be a direct follow-up toHappy Gilmoreand that many of the original cast members have returned to reprise their roles. Netflix released a short teaser in December 2024, followed bya second in March 2025.With the trailer now out, we finally get to see more of what’s to come from the story perspective.
To recap, inHappy Gilmore, Happy (Sandler) is a temperamental hockey player who isn’t good enough to go pro but keeps trying. By chance, he discovers a hidden talent for golf. With the help of his coach, Chubbs (the late Carl Weathers), he uses this untapped talent to enter tournaments and win money. The reason? He wants to help save his grandmother’s (the late Frances Bay) home from being taken away due to failure to pay decades' worth of taxes.
By the end of that movie, Happy (Sandler) wins the big tournament, much to the chagrin of his arrogant new rival and former top player, Shooter McGavin (Christopher McDonald). He also wins the girl, Virginia (Julie Bowen), and his grandmother’s house is saved thanks to his prize winnings, allowing her to move back in. Everything was coming up roses.
‘Happy Gilmore 2’ Swings Out With a New Trailer at Netflix’s TUDUM
Adam Sandler is heading back to the course in the trailer for Netflix’s sequel to the classic sports comedy.
The trailer forHappy Gilmore 2picks up in real time, 30 years later. Happy finds himself in a bind once again, needing to make money quickly so he can pay to put his daughter into an expensive ballet school. And so, he returns to the one thing he did before that resulted in a big payday in a short period: golf. However, he hasn’t played in some time, which probably means he’ll need coaching to relearn everything he has forgotten and help get his head back into the game.
The story from there seemingly follows a similar trajectory to the original, from Happy surprisingly entering a tournament to hiring a random guy (Bad Bunny) as his caddy, making some good and bad shots, and fighting with lots of rivals. There are some notable returning faces, such as Ben Stiller as the creepy, mean, and abusive orderly Hal, who once mistreated Grandma (something Happy actually never found out about). There are also some welcome new ones, like Lavell Crawford as the son of Chubbs, a lovely way tohonor Weathers’ memory.
The ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ Trailer Lacks Heart, Humor, and a Clear Plot
And These New Characters Don’t Look Great
Happy Gilmore 2
It’s painful to admit being such a fan who has been looking forward to this movie since it was confirmed, but the trailer left me disappointed. The plot seems recycled. Of course, it makes sense that the story would come full circle to please fans of the original who want to see Happy back on the golf green. However, it doesn’t seem that there is a clear path to make this film distinct from the original in some way while still capturing the essence of the characters and the story. That’s the formula that makes for a great sequel.Based on the trailer, the writing appears to lack creativity.
Furthermore,Sandler enjoys featuring his family membersin all his latest projects, a tradition he has also maintained with his friends. Sandler strikes me as the type of person who doesn’t care what people think in this respect. He arguably kept Rob Schneider’s career alive in the ‘90s by casting him in numerous movies, while Steve Buscemi famously appeared in many Adam Sandler films, too. However,in a movie like this, he should have cast others.
Sandler’s daughter, Sunny Sandler, who stars inHappy Gilmore 2,is a wonderful actor, as she proved inYou Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah.But when it comes to a character and movie that fans have held so dear for decades, she seems ill-suited, almost distracting, for the role. Fans want to feel like they are watching Happy, not Adam Sandler. With Sandler’s wife Jackie and other daughter Sadie also having cameos in the movie, it detracts from the nostalgic feel of the film, makingHappy Gilmore 2seem like a family affair for Sandler and not a film designed to pay fan service. What’s more, the three of them account for a significant part of the short trailer, shown a total of seven times throughout the two-and-a-half minutes.
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There are many obvious callbacks to the original, which is exactly what fans want to see from a sequel nearly 30 years later. But based on the trailer, they are stitched together in weird ways with no thematic tone. Of course, these are random moments pulled from different parts of the movie: that’s what a trailer is, after all. Butit still somehow seems disjointed. What logical reason is there to bring back Hal, for example, beyond having Stiller make a cameo? We’ll have to watch the movie to find out, but the trailer doesn’t make me as excited about it as I hoped to be.
Some returning characters, meanwhile, don’t get enough screen time. McDonald is only in a single scene at the end. Yet the dynamic between him and Happy was at the center of the original, though he did have a larger presence in the previous trailers. Bowen is barely seen in the new trailer as well, making her appear like nothing more than window dressing. Her character, however, played a pivotal role in shaping Happy into who he became. She isn’t just someone on the sidelines.
Initially,I felt as though the trailer was missing some of the most enticing guest stars, though this might be by design to keep those details close to the chest until the film’s release. Upon further inspection, watching multiple times and freezing frames, many of them are detectable. This ranges from Travis Kelce to Eminem (based on his goofy hat, he may be the son of the heckler from the original, who was played by the late Joe Flaherty), and Post Malone. Fans can also spot more recognizable faces, such as Margaret Qualley, Eric Andre, and Kevin Nealon. So many, however, are blink-and-you’ll-miss-them appearances, which might have been the intention. It’s a great way to get fans to watch the trailer over and over. But a longer clip from one or two of these high-profile guest stars would have had a greater impact.
Despite my disappointment with the trailer, I’ll still be watchingHappy Gilmore 2once itpremieres on Netflix on July 27, 2025. But I’m going in with reservations.I hope that this trailer is merely the product of bad editing. Maybe the focus was on avoiding revealing the funniest jokes, which runs the risk of ruining the moment when you finally do watch. However, in doing so, the trailer ultimately failed to reveal much that would entice fans.
Creating a trailer is a delicate balance between offering enough to tease without showing all the best parts of the movie.ButHappy Gilmore 2missed the mark completely with this trailer. This is a movie for fans of the original — the ones who bought movie tickets or rented the DVD to laugh at all the antics. As someone who falls into that camp, I wanted to see a focus on Happy, Virginia, Shooter, even Crawford, in place of Weathers, with a brand-new story versus a remake of the old one. Sadly,the trailer suggests that we’re getting a recycled story with a bigger focus on new characters, striking out on both counts.
10 Small Details You Didn’t Know About ‘Happy Gilmore’
With ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ arriving this year, it’s time to revisit the original with some facts that may have escaped audiences.
Who knows? Maybe once the movie is out, it will prove that the trailer was poorly done and didn’t do it justice. Sandler, after all, is confident enough to know that good trailer or not, his fans will show up and watch the movie, regardless. I do find that the more I watch it, the more details I notice, and the better it gets. But based on my initial feelings after watching the big reveal of this trailer, I’ll be waiting for the next one in hopes that it builds more excitement than this. Because for this new look, the price is sadly wrong, b***ch.StreamHappy Gilmore 2onNetflixon August 05, 2025.
