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    HomeEntertainmentHow 'Happy Gilmore 2' Honored 'The Price Is Right's Bob Barker

    How ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ Honored ‘The Price Is Right’s Bob Barker

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    [Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Happy Gilmore 2. ]

    Happy Gilmore 2 has arrived, and it features plenty of cheeky nods to the original 1996 film Happy Gilmore, which tracked Adam Sandler‘s titular wannabe hockey player as he uncovered his unique skills on the golf course.

    Now, nearly 30 years after the events of the first film, Sandler is back on the green, but his latest hurdle to overcome is the grief he’s experiencing after losing his wife, Virginia (Julie Bowen), whom he accidentally killed when she was hit in the head with a stray golf ball. Finding himself widowed with four sons and a daughter, Happy falls into a pattern of alcoholism and financial destitution, forcing him to move himself and his daughter, who is the youngest of his five kids, into a cruddy apartment that they’ve somehow found themselves sharing with real-life golfer John Daly.

    Eager to send his daughter, Vienna (Sunny Sandler), off to a competitive Parisian ballet school, Happy is inspired to get back out on the course and win some big bucks to pull them out of debt and allow his kids the future he’s always wanted for them.

    Netflix

    At this point in time, Happy’s grandmother (Frances Bay) is long gone, and fans will recall his mentor Chubbs (Carl Weathers) was killed after he fell out of a window while being presented the head of the alligator who bit off his hand. Both Bay and Weathers have died since the first film, as had The Price Is Right‘s former host Bob Barker, who played alongside Happy in a celebrity tournament during the first film.

    Additionally, Richard Kiel and Joe Flaherty, who portrayed Happy’s former boss Mr. Larson and Donald, the man known for yelling “jacka**” on the golf course, have also since died, and the film took time to pay tribute to all of them. But Barker definitely got particularly special attention, as Happy noted he’d created a video game like Tiger Woods‘, which included a version of his fight with Barker on the golf course.

    Again, the fight was referenced in Happy’s first confrontation with original foe Shooter McGavin (Christopher McDonald), who was sprung from a mental institution by a businessman (played by Benny Safdie) who is attempting to build a league outside of the PGA. When Shooter recoils from the prospect, he sets off to find Virginia’s grave and runs into Happy, where the men have a little fight.

    Joe Flaherty, Eminem, Bob Barker, Frances Bay, and Richard Kiel in 'Happy Gilmore 2'

    Netflix

    As they stumble around the graveyard, each stop includes a feature moment for a gravestone of a former character that’s no longer able to appear, including the aforementioned individuals, among whom is Barker.  When the action pauses at that gravestone, Shooter fights Happy in the same way Barker did, sweetly honoring the original film and Barker’s appearance.

    Many of the other late characters were replaced with similar versions of their roles, but with new performers playing their “kids,” including rapper Eminem portraying the son of Flaherty’s Donald, and basketball player Boban Marjanović stepping in to play a lookalike version of Mr. Larson’s son. Overall, it’s a nostalgia fest that fans must not miss.

    By the film’s end, after Happy’s won big and sent his kids jetting off abroad, he takes a moment to look up at the sky and sees his lost loved ones, similar to a moment from the first film. In this version, there are far more people involved, including Barker, Bay, Flaherty, Weathers, Kiel, Eminem (who was eaten by alligators in the film), an alligator, and Abraham Lincoln, along with Virginia, who watches Happy from above.

    It’s clear from the clip that footage from the original film was recycled, but it was a nice nod to Barker and the rest of the gang, and in lieu of The Price Is Right jokes, the new film opted to reference Jeopardy!, including a clip in which Vienna plays a clue reading by Ken Jennings out loud as players fail to guess Happy’s name.

    What did you think of the homages to past stars, including Barker? Let us know in the comments section and relive every hilarious moment of Happy Gilmore 2 on Netflix anytime.

    Happy Gilmore 2, Streaming Now, Netflix





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