Adam Sandler bat mitzvah film director reveals ‘really funny’ real-life parallel

Filmmaker Sammi Cohen spent time with the Sandler family ahead of the film

The director of Adam Sandler’s latest hit film has revealed some commonalities between what audiences see on screen and the real-life goings-on of the Sandler family.

Sammi Cohen directed the recently released Netflix comedy You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah, which stars the 50 First Dates actor, his wife and their daughters.

Sunny Sandler, 14, plays Stacy, a teenager preparing for her traditional ceremony welcoming her into womanhood, in the eyes of the Jewish faith.

However, according to Cohen, circumstances ahead of filming were quite close to what fans see in the movie.

“What’s really funny is right before we started prepping for the film, Sunny had her actual bat mitzvah,” Cohen told People magazine.

“So I went to that service, and we got to do the real-life bat mitzvah and then left to make the movie. It was a really fun life-movie moment.”

Cohen, who also directed the 2022 Hulu film Crush, noted that Sunny’s actual bat mitzvah celebration “felt equally as fun as the parties you see [in the film]”.

“It was really, really fun,” they continued. “And it was, again, it was just such a perfect moment of life meets movie. It was just magical.”

Sammi Cohen, Sunny Sandler and Adam Sandler (Getty / Netflix)

Previously, Cohen weighed in on Sandler’s choice to cast members of his immediate family in the film, amid some criticism of nepotism in Hollywood.

According to the filmmaker, it’s merely an example of Sandler’s habit of involving his loved ones in his creative projects.

“Sandler has a reputation for making movies with his friends, and that’s something we all want to do,” they told The Hollywood Reporter.

“What I say is, he’s still making movies with his friends, but they’re his kids. He is the kind of dad who’s also your best friend.

“When it comes to the sort of chatter we’re hearing online, I don’t really think twice about it because I’m going like, ‘Yeah, he’s doing the same thing he’s always done.’”

The teen comedy is based on the 2005 novel of the same name by Fiona Rosenbloom.

Since its release on 25 August, YASNITMBM has been at the top of the most-watched film chart on Netflix and currently sits as the highest-rated feature film of Sandler’s career on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.

You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah is streaming on Netflix now.