Adam Sandler Confirms Several Sixers are Set to Appear in His New Movie

Movie star and comedian Adam Sandler might be a fan of the New York Knicks, but over the last couple of years, he's had a couple of ties to the Philadelphia 76ers.

A couple of years ago, when working on his highly successful movie 'Uncut Gems,' it was revealed that Sandler was expected to have a notable Philadelphia-based co-star acting alongside him in the movie.

Sixers center Joel Embiid was slated to do the movie, but he was instead replaced with former NBA star forward Kevin Garnett. According to reports, Embiid had a scheduling conflict as the movie shoot interfered with the Sixers' season.

While Embiid missed out on being in Sandler's last basketball-related movie, several Sixers are set to make cameos in his upcoming movie titled 'Hustle,' which is based on a former basketball recruiter who attempts to remake his career by bringing a player from overseas to play in the NBA.

The fictional overseas player will be portrayed by Memphis Grizzlies forward Juancho Hernangomez, who will make his acting debut with a significant role.

76ers players might not be the stars of the show in the upcoming film, but since the movie is being filmed in Philadelphia, several members of the Sixers were spotted on the set. And on a recent episode of The Dan Patrick Show, Sandler himself confirmed the members of the Sixers that were present for a recent shoot. 

"Yesterday, I did a scene with Doc Rivers, and a bunch of the Sixers were in there," Sandler told Patrick this week. "Tobias (Harris), Matisse (Thybulle), Seth Curry, and Tyrese Maxey. It’s all nice, guys."

In addition to members Hernangomez and multiple Sixers mentioned above, Miami Heat guard and Philadelphia native Kyle Lowry is also slated to make an appearance in the film as well. The movie started shooting back in October of 2020. As the movie's shoot continues, there's yet to be a release date put in place at this time.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.