A ‘nepo-baby’ row hasn’t stopped You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah from becoming Adam Sandler’s best-rated movie on review site Rotten Tomatoes – and now the film’s director has insisted that Sunny and Sadie Sandler, who play the daughters of their real-life father Adam, were among the hardest-working people on set.
Director Sammi Cohen, who was hired specifically because Sandler wanted an up-and-coming young Jewish director, has spoken out against the nepotism jibes – first reported in the JC – by saying the two young actresses were the right people for the job.
"They’ve had roles in other movies and they’re familiar with being on set but one thing sticks out – they work harder than most adults I know," Sammi told The Hollywood Reporter. "They love acting and filmmaking in general. They take such an interest in how the movie is made, and they’re both so talented."
Sunny, 14, stars as one of the leads in the Netflix film about two best friends whose bat mitzvah plans are waylaid by an argument over a boy while Sadie, 17, plays her big sister. "I think Sunny feels like this really real kid," adds Sammi.
"She’s got this incredible free-spirited nature and a natural silliness that elicits moments of charming vulnerability. She’s loveable and relatable and the kind of person you root for.
"Sadie too, all I had to do with Sadie was empower her to lean into what she does best. She’s got this natural ability to be just effortlessly funny with that dry humour in her ground delivery."
The film also stars Sandler’s wife Jackie – who, like their daughters, is a regular in his films - and his Uncut Gems co-star Idina Menzel.
Sandler – who has a $250million four-picture deal with Netflix - famously likes to fill his films with his friends and Cohen says this film is no different.
"He’s still making movies with his friends but they’re his kids,’ says the director. ‘He is the kind of dad who’s also your best friend."
Sammi also reveals that he and Adam had ‘bat mitzvah’ consultants on the set and also went to a ‘ton of parties’ to do research. "In all that research, girls aren’t wearing heels, they’re actually wearing sneakers," he says. "And that’s why you hear Dua Lipa and Olivia Rodrigo and Lady Gaga in the film – its way more current."
The Netflix film has won praise for a truthful depiction of the rollercoaster bat mitzvah experience in a message that can also appeal to other teens.
‘I’ve always been interested in the coming-of-age genre and I was really excited to tell this story for Jews,’ says Sammi.
"Learning about who you are and who you want to be in the world, it’s such a Jewish experience, but its also a universal experience and it’s a way for people to really celebrate their similarities and how alike we are instead of focusing on how we’re different. It’s really such a universal message, but Jewish kids get to feel like we have a movie too, which is really exciting to me."
