Warning: This article contains spoilers for Happy Gilmore 2.
Fans of Happy Gilmore 2 were met with a surprising turn of events right at the beginning of the newly released movie.
After waiting nearly thirty years, audiences finally received the sequel they had been longing for, with Happy Gilmore 2 premiering on Netflix on July 25.
As of now, the sequel holds a respectable 72 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, falling just 13 percent short of the original Happy Gilmore’s rating.
Devoted Adam Sandler aficionados quickly tuned into the sequel and noticed a touching homage to his late Grown Ups co-star Cameron Boyce, who tragically passed away at 20 years old in 2019.
Check out the trailer for the movie here:
The tribute to Boyce isn’t the sole topic of discussion; the unforeseen beginning of Happy Gilmore 2 has also captured attention.
Several original cast members returned for the sequel, yet one significant character’s comeback was alarmingly brief.
The character in question is Happy’s wife, Virginia, portrayed by Julie Bowen, well-known for her role in Modern Family.
Within the opening minutes of Happy Gilmore 2, Virginia tragically dies in an accidental golfing incident caused by her husband. Consequently, Happy finds himself taking on the responsibility of raising their five children alone.
Fans of Sandler have expressed their dissatisfaction on social media following Virginia’s abrupt departure.
One fan wrote: “I’m not gonna lie, I was disappointed to see Virginia Venit’s character killed off in #HappyGilmore2. She looked good after 30 years and we only got 3 minutes of her in this film.”
Another critic of Happy Gilmore 2 described the decision to remove Bowen’s character as ‘an outrageously stupid idea.’
Sharing a similar view, another viewer commented: “Extremely disappointed with the decision to kill Virginia off… Their dynamic could have made this movie.”
Someone else expressed their frustration, saying: “Why the f**k did they start off Happy Gilmore 2 with him killing Virginia. You cannot be serious.”
Anticipating the backlash surrounding Virginia’s death, the director of Happy Gilmore 2, Kyle Newacheck, addressed the situation.
When questioned about whether the film could recover from such a grim and intense start, Newacheck told SlashFilm: “There’s always a concern when you’re playing with that type of darkness. But I don’t know, I was never really concerned, because it is the driving force [of the film].
“If you pull that out, then what do you have? You don’t have anything real. But yeah, when I first read the screenplay, that’s like page five, and I was glued when that happened. So I knew what that feeling felt like, and I knew that people could get over it. You can get over it.”
Happy Gilmore 2 is currently available for streaming on Netflix.