Adam Sandler's Awards Campaign Will Include Mark Twain Prize, Because Why Not?

Film and TV legend Adam Sandler is on a wild and unexpected awards campaign in an attempt to capture that elusive Oscar that evaded him after Uncut Gems. While The Sandman hasn’t yet snagged that Oscar gold, he’s secured a significantly more rare recognition — the Kennedy Center announced this morning that Sandler will be the recipient of the 24th Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.

After all the craziness that has happened in entertainment over the last year, why shouldn’t the Kennedy Center honor the SNL and Jack and Jill star with the same award that they gave both Jon Stewart and Bill Cosby?

The announcement came just 24 hours after Sandler was snubbed by the Golden Globes for his performance in Hustle, a role that’s already netted him the prestigious Performer Tribute at the Gotham Awards. The Gotham recognition usually indicates that an actor or actress is in line for an Oscar nomination, an acknowledgement that Sandler has been sporadically chasing since he first realized that he could actually act back when he did Punch-Drunk Love in 2002. 

By winning the Mark Twain Prize, Sandler joins an accomplished and eclectic list of comedy legends such as Richard Pryor, George Carlin and Sandler’s old boss, Lorne Michaels. This March, Sandler will be honored by a long list of to-be-determined contemporaries who will speak to his talent and impact — considering Sandler’s frequent choice in castmates, expect some heartfelt speeches from the likes of Rob Schneider, Kevin James and Pac-Man.

Interestingly, the Mark Twain Prize ceremony will be held exactly seven days after the 95th Academy Awards, so, if Sandler’s Oscar odds improve between now and then, there is a possibility that the guy who made The Ridiculous 6 will win two of the most prestigious prizes in entertainment in the same week. 

Sandler has seldom thought about how tastemakers view his work, but the tide is clearly turning on the critical impression of the prolific performer after years of single-digit Rotten Tomatoes scores and 16 Razzie nominations. Maybe the Mark Twain Prize will mark a pivot point in Sandler’s career as the star elects to work on more projects like Hustle and Uncut Gems that show the film world the full breadth of his talent.

Or maybe his next movie will just be something that sounds like Cartman came up with the idea.