Proving yet again that Netflix audiences just can’t get enough of Adam Sandler, the top two movies on the platform right now both star the performer. The list of the most popular films on Netflix US for May 28th has Uncut Gems at the top of the pile, with Just Go With It coming in at second place, ahead of other recent fare such as The Lovebirds and The Wrong Missy. What, then, might explain why Sandler continues to dominate on Netflix?
Well, the success of Uncut Gems on the streaming site is perhaps more easily explained, given that the film received almost universal critical acclaim upon its theatrical release, and only arrived on the platform on Monday. Sandler’s performance as a jeweler who gets drawn into an increasingly stressful set of circumstances, including an outrageous bet, was arguably unfortunate to be overlooked at the Oscars this year, and proves that, when he’s in the mood, he can be an excellent actor.
By comparison, Just Go With It is a more traditional Sandler romantic comedy, given that it involves luxury locations, a fairly thin plot, and the suspicious sense that the actor and his friends wanted to combine work with a holiday. Just Go With It sees Sandler play a plastic surgeon who visits Hawaii, and gets his loyal assistant, played by Jennifer Aniston, to pretend to be his ex-wife. As is to be expected, things don’t go smoothly, and Netflix viewers are clearly hooked.
The particular success of Sandler’s work this week can also be considered against the baffling fact that over two billion hours of his output have been watched on Netflix since he signed an exclusive deal with them in 2014. That’s two billion or more hours of Adam Sandler, which shows that, regardless of critical consensus, there’s a big and loyal audience out there for the actor. Sandler fans won’t have long to wait for new material, either, with upcoming projects including Hubie Halloween and Dan Pan, as well as a film with LeBron James.
