Adam Sandler, an Emmy, Grammy and Golden Globe-nominated actor, never expected his Hollywood career to reach the lengths it has.
During an interview with AARP, ahead of receiving the AARP Movies for Grownups Career Achievement Award in January, Sandler told the outlet that throughout his career, he’s tried to “continue marching forward.”
“I never thought of this in my life. I was always trying to just continue marching forward, but it’s random moments like this that are interesting,” he said, referring to recognition for the award. “It’s almost like flipping [on] the TV and seeing an old movie of yours. You just go, ‘Oh man, I used to be pretty damn skinny!'”
He told the outlet that being the center of attention and doing press over the past three decades has made him “go bananas.”
“I can’t tell you how bananas I go talking about myself too much. I just run to the hills, man,” Sandler said.
Sandler told AARP that he’s kept a close professional circle since his career kicked off in the 90s.
“I’ve had the same team for a very long time, since [I was] a young guy, and I see they feel very close to what I’ve done and the choices I’ve made. They’re a part of those decisions and thoughts, so it feels like [everyone feels] the ups and downs together,” Sandler said.
Sandler appeared on “Saturday Night Live” from 1990-1995 before shifting to the movie space. “Happy Gilmore,” “The Waterboy,” and “Billy Madison” are some of his most well-known movies that helped shape him as an actor.
In 2022, Sandler was a guest on “Little Gold Men” podcast and opened up about how he feels about some of his past work.
“I feel the same in the way that I was always pretty excited to be doing it. I don’t look back at any of my old stuff and go, ‘Wow, you nailed it there, man.’ I’m usually like, ‘Wow, you were just getting by, man,’” Sandler said. “I think just getting more and more settled as a human being, my acting is probably changing over the years.”
“I always thought I was doing the right thing in the moment, and I still do, but I look back at even stuff from five years ago and I go, ‘Oh, should’ve done this, man, that was a little weird choice that you made there, man. What the hell happened?’ Maybe I played it too big or maybe I played it – I was too trying to show what I was feeling in that moment or the joke was over the top or whatever the hell it was,” he further explained.
“But it meant a lot to me and I believed in it then, so I still back it up.”
In July, Sandler told Fox News Digital the key to a successful career in comedy.
“We work hard with a bunch of people who like to create, write stuff down, try to make it fresh as much as we can and think about the audience,” he said at the time.
