Actors Adam Sandler and Brendan Fraser are two well-respected icons of the entertainment industry. Both of them gained popularity around the same time, in the early 1990s, primarily in the comedy genre. Sandler’s films have consistently performed well at the box office, thanks to his loyal fan base, whereas Fraser’s career faced some setbacks in the late 2000s, but he has made a strong comeback in recent years as he won an Academy Award for the Best Actor for his performance in The Whale (2022).
The two worked together in Michael Lehmann’s 1994 movie, Airheads. The two stars appeared for Variety’s Actor-On-Actor interview in 2022 and Sandler revealed that he starred in the movie only because Fraser was in it.
Adam Sandler and Brendan Fraser starred in Airheads (1994)
Actors Brendan Fraser and Adam Sandler both gained popularity in the 1990s. Sandler gained popularity first, thanks to his appearances on several TV shows, while Fraser had a slow start. Overall, both actors have left a mark on the industry with their unique contributions, and their careers have evolved in different ways over time.
In 1994, the two worked together in Michael Lehmann’s 1994 movie, Airheads. Brendan Fraser played the role of Chester “Chazz Darby” Ogilvie and Adam Sandler played the role of Pip, a drummer. The movie wasn’t a huge success as it only earned about $5.8 million on a budget of $11.2 million.
The director of the movie didn’t want Brendan Fraser to star in the movie
In 2022, Adam Sandler and Brendan Fraser appeared in Variety’s Actor-On-Actor interview and during the interview, Sandler revealed some information about Fraser’s casting in the movie. The Uncut Gems star said,
“Brendan, you were in a movie called Airheads. Remember when I discovered you? You were just a kid. I stole you from Pauly and said, ‘Get over here.'” He then added, “I was like, this guy shouldn’t just be a caveman — he should be in a band. The director, Michael Lehmann, was very against you. He was like, ‘I don’t get it. I don’t see the caveman being in the movie’ and I just said, ‘He can do other shit, man.'”
Director Michael Lehmann didn’t want Brendan Fraser to play the lead role as he was not impressed by Fraser’s performance as Link in Encino Man (1992).
Adam Sandler came to Brendan Fraser’s rescue
Sandler then did something that saved Fraser’s place in the movie. In the interview, he revealed that he told the director that he will only star in the movie if Fraser plays the lead role,
“I eventually went to his house at like 4 in the morning, woke him up, and I said, ‘Just know Adam Sandler ain’t going to be in Airheads unless old Fraser is in it.’ So he changed his little tune.”
Fraser then revealed that Michael Lehmann came to Chicago to meet him and had a very different tone. The actor then thanked Sandler for looking out for him.
Source: Variety
