Entertainment
Jena Sims Recalls ‘Special’ Interaction Adam Sandler Had with Her 1-Year-Old Son on Happy Gilmore 2 Set (Exclusive)
NEED TO KNOW
- Model-actress Jena Sim tells PEOPLE she and her husband, pro golfer Brooks Koepka, brought their 1-year-old son to the set of Happy Gilmore 2 to meet lead Adam Sandler during filming
- Sims says “it was neat” to see Sandler and his friends in their element on set
- The role marks Sims’s first foray into comedic acting after a decade and a half in slasher B-movies
When you’re Jena Sims’s son, Crew, Take Your Kid to Work Day is like none other.
The 36-year-old model and actress, who shares her 1-year-old with husband and professional golfer Brooks Koepka, is hitting the silver screen this summer with a small role in Happy Gilmore 2, the Adam Sandler-led follow-up to the 1996 classic comedy. But the opportunity was made even more exciting by the fact that she shared scenes with her husband, who naturally plays a pro golfer in the film.
While the duo filmed their scenes for the movie over the course of a month, there were a few days when one of the pair wasn’t working — and the generous parents didn’t miss out on the chance to bring baby Crew along to the set and even to introduce him to Sandler himself.
“It was honestly so special because our son got to meet him,” Sims exclusively tells PEOPLE. “I’m like, ‘Dude, you met Adam Sandler. That is so sick.’ ”
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Still, Sims acknowledges that babies can be loud, so she and her husband made sure to stay with their son by the actors’ trailers and away from the set so as not to disturb filming.
“We know how to behave,” Sims jokes. “He’s a baby. We can’t tell him to be quiet.”
It was also exciting, Sims continues, to get to see a master of comedy like Sandler in his element. “It was neat to see Adam and all of his friends just improv and riff off each other,” says the star. “It felt like the band was back together.”
While working on the film, Sims also had the chance to meet Sandler’s wife Jackie, whom she called “the nicest person.”
“I don’t know what I expected, but she was just over and beyond so nice,” says the actress. “I was like, ‘We would be friends in this world.’ She was just so cool.”
For Sims, who spent her 20s acting in a variety of slasher B-movies playing what she jokingly dubbed “the hot blonde who dies first,” her spot in Happy Gilmore 2 also marked a first foray into true comedic acting.
“Comedy is my passion. I had so much fun with it,” says Sims of the role. “I feel like I proved myself.”
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