Adam Sandler paired up with Queen Latifah for the sports drama film Hustle, which earned Sandler his first Screen Actors Guild Award nomination. Sandler played Stanley Sugerman, an NBA scout, and Latifah, his wife Teresa Sugermen, in one of the perfect mixed couple castings in Hollywood. Director Jeremiah Zagar was more than happy with having Latifah on board, who joined the project after a call from Sandler, her close friend.
In Hustle, Sandler’s character discovers a raw but talented basketball player in Spain and takes the challenging path to prepare him for the NBA draft. Latifah’s character provides him with the necessary emotional support to stick to his decision.
Adam Sandler And Queen Latifah Were The Perfect Mixed Couple In Hustle
In an interview with Business Insider, Director Jeremiah Zagar opened up about his film Hustle, starring Adam Sandler and Queen Latifah. Zagar shared that one of the highlights of the movie was casting Latifah as Sandler’s on-screen wife in the film. While the characters were well-written in the movie and the actors did a brilliant job in portraying the mixed couple, one thing made the casting even more special for Zagar.
The director shared that both the leads were friends with him and he loved having them in the film. Zagar revealed that he rooted for the beautiful combination since he was in a mixed couple relationship himself and also because of the fact that Philadelphia, the movie’s setting, was known for its diversity. He also added that it was Sandler who suggested bringing Latifah to the film.
Zagar shared that they looked right together in the film because they were friends for years. According to him, they also did not fit the perfect Hollywood archetype. However, besides their acting skills and their friendship, they could convince the viewers of their relationship because both of them had this every-person quality. Zagar shared with Business Insider:
“They looked like a real couple. That comes from years of friendship and they are these movie stars that aren’t the perfect Hollywood archetype. There’s something more. They have that every person quality.”
Adam Sandler’s love for basketball drove him towards the script of Hustle. He produced the film along with LeBron James, the NBA legend. The film received positive reviews from critics who praised Sandler’s performance in the film.
Queen Latifah And Adam Sandler Revealed That They Already Had The Chemistry
Queen Latifah shared with E! News’ Daily Pop that working alongside Adam Sandler was more comfortable than her other roles. She shared that she loved the 50 First Dates actor and added that they had the chemistry to pull off the character from the years of friendship they shared. She even shared that she would fight for Sandler. Latifah shared with Daily Pop:
“Don’t we love Adam Sandler? That’s my man right there. The chemistry was already there to make this happen ‘cause I love him, he loves me, we’re crazy about each other. That’s my man, and I fight for my man.”
Sandler too only had great words of praise for the rapper-turned-actress. He shared with Yahoo! Entertainment that it was a joy to work with Latifah. He added that Latifah had a good energy and vibe that made people happy wherever she went. Sandler shared with Yahoo! Entertainment:
“I love [her]. It was an absolute joy. Whenever the Queen would show up on the set, anytime, any place we were, people, look [and say], ‘That’s the Queen, man.’ It’s good energy. She makes people happy, and [is] nice to everybody… I mean, that was just a good vibe, man.”
Hustle is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
