Adam Sandler delivered one of the most memorable moments of the Palm Springs International Film Awards gala, turning a heartfelt honor into a full-blown comedy set while accepting the Chairman’s Award.
Presented by his “Jay Kelly” co-star Laura Dern, Sandler took the stage and quickly veered into a wildly funny alternate-history monologue, imagining what his life might have looked like had his acting career stalled after college.
“When I graduated college, I got a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and my father told me he was very proud of me and I should try it out for one year,” Sandler recalled. “He said, ‘See if you get something going. If it doesn’t work out after one year, you’ll come work for me.’ My dad was an electrical contractor. I didn’t know very much about electricity or contracting.”
From there, Sandler riffed on a fictional future spent wiring fuse boxes instead of movie sets, joking that he’d still be married to his wife, Jackie, but living in a much smaller house with “about 10 less bathrooms and a few less statues of me.”
He added that he’d “probably know how to charge my own phone” and would still get stopped on the street. “Not because of the fame factor, but because they’ve never seen anybody with that much scoliosis.”
The bit escalated as Sandler roped his longtime friend Rob Schneider into the fantasy, joking that Schneider would “work with me on every electrical contracting project I ever had to do.”
Amid the laughs, Sandler repeatedly returned to gratitude, crediting the unlikely run that followed that pivotal first year out of college. “I’ve been acting a very long time,” he said. “I can’t thank you all enough for letting me have this career that I’ve been lucky enough to have.”
He singled out “Jay Kelly” his recent creative high point, praising the cast and director Noah Baumbach for pushing him to do some of his best work.
“I didn’t want to let him down. I didn’t want to let down any of my castmates. I didn’t want to let down my family. I didn’t want to let myself down,” Sandler said sincerely. “So I always try my best.”
The speech closed on a characteristically sincere note, with Sandler thanking his wife — “my forever girl” — and promising the audience he’s not done yet.
“Thank you guys for letting me make all these movies over the years. I’m going to try to make more.”
The Palm Springs International Film Awards gala, held annually during the Palm Springs International Film Festival, has become a key stop on the awards-season circuit. Sandler is currently nominated for a Critics Choice and Golden Globe Award for his turn in Baumbach’s film.