'You Don't Mess With the Zohan': Q&A with Adam Sandler
By Emily Christianson, Hollywood.com Staff
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Thursday, June 05, 2008
A look back at Adam Sandler’s career reveals a series of characters all hoping to reach their true potential, but his latest role takes the cake. You Don't Mess With the Zohan centers on an undefeatable Israeli soldier named Zohan who longs to pursue his dream of becoming a hairstylist. Too embarrassed to tell his family and friends of his plan, he fakes his own death and moves to America under the name Scrappy Coco to help make the world more “silky smooth.”
We caught up with Sandler, who also produced and cowrote the film, during his press tour in Los Angeles to find out more.
Hollywood: This film has been in development for 10 years. Why was this project so important to you?
Adam Sandler: When I was a kid I always heard about the Israeli army and you always heard about this tiny little country and how everyone around them wants them gone and every time somebody comes after them they take care of business. As a Jewish kid you were proud of that…I [also] had an Israeli guy who used to cut my hair…I just thought it would be funny to see a soldier, Israeli soldier who was a bad ass warrior and fearless and he had a secret dream of wanting to do something else but was embarrassed to share it with anybody…I always thought it was funny that he is a hair stylist and that someone would come in and make light of what he does and think there is no possible way he could kick his ass as much as he could. That’s where it started.