Adam Sandler hilariously calls out Ben Stiller in speech written by his children at Gotham Awards

Adam Sandler in Hustle
(Image credit: Netflix)

Adam Sandler brought the house down with a hilarious speech at the Gotham Awards. The comic actor was given a performers tribute award at the event after appearing in the Netflix movie Hustle earlier this year.

Putting on a Southern accent – as he has done for many speeches in the past – he read out the speech "written" by his daughters to the "well-dressed dignitaries, highly educated hipsters, and various other plus-ones" in the audience. 

"Thank you for givin’ our daddy, Mr. Adam Sandler, this prestigious lifetime, all-time prime-time achievement tribute award," he began. "It means a lot to him, seeing as most of his awards are shaped like popcorn buckets or fake mini-Oscars that say 'Father of the Year', which he sadly purchased himself."

"While daddy is with you tonight, we’re doing everything we’re not allowed to do when daddy is home, like eat his Yodels or try on his Spanx or, dare we say, laugh out loud at Ben Stiller movies," Sandler continued. "The last time daddy caught us chuckling away at the Meet the Parents trilogy, he immediately stormed into the room he calls 'The Screaming Room,' which we just call 'the shower,' and bellowed out the phrase, 'Only the Sandman makes people laugh. Fuck every other comedian.'"

Continuing the premise that his daughter wrote the speech, Sandler said he wouldn’t let them come to the awards ceremony because they would just be wondering where Timothée Chalamet was. He said his career has two guiding principles: "People in prison need movies too and TBS needs content."

You can watch the full speech on the Gotham Awards YouTube stream – it starts three hours and 44 minutes in. Other winners at the annual New York City awards ceremony included Everything Everywhere All At Once, which took home the Best Feature Film, and Aftersun’s Charlotte Wells who won the Breakthrough Director Award.

For what else is heading to cinemas this year, check out our guide to upcoming movie releases.

Fay Watson
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I’m the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering TV and film for the Total Film and SFX sections online. I previously worked as a Senior Showbiz Reporter and SEO TV reporter at Express Online for three years. I've also written for The Resident magazines and Amateur Photographer, before specializing in entertainment.

Read more
Adam Sandler as Howard Ratner in Uncut Gems
You can now watch Adam Sandler's best movie for free
Adrien Brody as László Tóth in The Brutalist
The Brutalist's Adrien Brody becomes a two-time Best Actor winner at the 2025 Oscars: "This is the chance to begin again"
Kieran Culkin and Jesse Eisenberg in A Real Pain
Kieran Culkin wins Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars 2025 and makes a hilarious and heartfelt dedication to his wife: "Ye of little faith"
Severance
Ben Stiller says Step Brothers led him to cast Adam Scott in Severance: "It’s when I knew he was an incredible actor"
Gabriel LaBelle, Ella Hunt, Matt Wood, and Dylan O'Brien in Saturday Night (2025)
Live from New York… it's nervous laughter! How Ghostbusters' Jason Reitman nails the all-too-rare dread-inducing comedy with new Saturday Night Live movie
Francis Ford Coppola and Adam Driver
The Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola has given a legendary response to his Razzie win for Megalopolis, which he is "thrilled" to accept
Latest in Drama Movies
Claire Danes as Juliet and Miriam Margolyes as Nurse in the movie Romeo + Juliet.
The 33 greatest movies based on Shakespeare
Bloodsport
The 32 greatest '80s action movies
Cosmo Jarvis
Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey adds Shogun star to its massively star-studded cast, and I'm getting Oppenheimer vibes all over again
Adrien Brody in The Brutalist
This year's Best Actor Oscars speech broke a record that was over 80 years old
Adrien Brody as László Tóth in The Brutalist
Oscars 2025 live coverage: All the winners, red carpet, and the 97th Academy Awards' biggest moments – as it happens
The Last Showgirl
Beneath the glitz and glam of The Last Showgirl is a heartbreaking story about what mothers give up
Latest in News
Overwatch 2
My hopes for an Overwatch anime or Diablo horror movie are going strong as Blizzard president points out "we are Blizzard Entertainment, and not simply Blizzard Games"
The New Thunderbolts leaping into action
Marvel's New Thunderbolts* comic steals the MCU's asterisk, and the reason why is just as big of a mystery
Pokemon Go players brace for the worst as Niantic is sold off for $3.5 billion: "This game is entering its death knell"
Stamp PSP
A 16-year-old pitch for a newly discovered first-party PSP game has me mourning the death of PlayStation's Japan Studio all over again
Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3
Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion actor Neil Newbon says he "got rid of" agents who deliberately kept him away from video game gigs: "They just didn't want me to do it"
Mass Effect
Jennifer Hale says she didn't see a single line as Mass Effect's Commander Shepard until it was time to record: "It was all cold reading on the spot"