George Clooney banned the use of Adam Sandler's nickname on the set of their movie Jay Kelly.
The former E.R. star plays the title role of an ageing actor in the new drama with Sandler as Kelly's manager Ron - and Clooney has revealed he urged the rest of the cast and crew not to call his co-star the 'Sandman' while they were shooting because he wanted Sandler to be taken seriously for his "incredible talent".
Clooney told The Hollywood Reporter: "You get treated the way you treat yourself. This was a different kind of role for Adam, and I wanted to make sure that he wasn’t making fun of his incredible talent.
"He likes to just deflect and I was like: ‘You know what, dude, you’re really good in this film and you’re a really good actor and let’s not just make jokes'."
However, Sandler insisted on keeping his nickname, adding: "I still call myself the Sandman; he [Clooney] can’t stop me.
"He just is very protective over me. He’s a really nice guy. We would do all these scenes together and we’d get deep together and he’d say: 'I just want people to recognize that' and I’d say: 'I’m OK, I like just working hard,’ and he’d say: 'No.' He’s very nice, he’s trying to look out for me."
In the comedy-drama, Clooney plays Jay Kelly, a famous actor who embarks on a whirlwind and unexpectedly profound journey alongside his long-time friend and manager, Ron, played by Sandler.
According to the film’s synopsis, the two men confront questions about their choices, relationships and legacies – a premise that resonated with Sandler immediately after hearing it from director Noah Baumbach.
Sandler told PEOPLE: "The sell was clear. My character loves George’s character so much, and I thought that would be fun to do and easy to do with George. And as a guy who’s an actor who’d live a similar life to Jay Kelly, it’s a crazy depiction – how accurate a lot of it is.”
The friendship between the actors extended well beyond the script, with Sandler explaining: “He invited my family everywhere, every place in Italy and England.
"Our trailers were next to each other. His friends and my friends all hung out, shot hoops, threw the baseball around, talked about other movies we like, other comedians that have made us laugh, his upbringing, my upbringing."
Though widely known for his comedic work, Sandler added the tone of Jay Kelly proved more intense at times.
He said: “It was heavy.”
Clooney also praised his co-star's ability to shift into deeper emotional territory, comparing his performance to that in Uncut Gems, the 2019 thriller directed by Josh and Benny Safdie.
He said: “Because of what his paycheck is, which is doing big goofy comedies, when he does these other, beautiful, Uncut Gems kinds of movies, it reminds people of that.
"He’s not just a good comedian."
Jay Kelly will open in select cinemas on November 14 before arriving on Netflix on December 5.
