He probably wishes he could have some retakes for some plays his team has made this season, but Jets head coach Rex Ryan called his cameo part in “I Hate You Dad,” the upcoming Adam Sandler movie, “a lot of fun.”
Sandler told the NFL Network’s Rich Eisen on Thursday that Ryan had a bit role in the movie where the gregarious Jets coach dresses up as an avid Patriots fan. No word on if he wore a Bill Belichick-inspired hoodie.
“It really wasn’t a Patriot thing, but my suit, it was pretty obvious it was a New England deal. It was fun,” Ryan said. “I’m not going to make a guarantee that there’s an Oscar coming up. DeNiro? Ryan? I don’t know. You’ll have to see.”
In his third year with the Jets, Ryan has become a bit of a pop culture icon with the team, including this past spring when he launched his book “Play Like You Mean It.” His flamboyant style and penchant for off-the-cuff remarks have made him a fan favorite and also an easy target for critics who think he spends too much time focusing on making headlines and not enough time on his football team. Last December, Ryan was more integral to the plotline of another movie, this time a foot fetish film allegedly made with his wife. The scandalous video was leaked on the internet and created a bit of a national firestorm.
Ryan called his film debut 11 months ago “a personal matter,” but was much more willing to talk about this foray into film with the Hollywood funnyman. Despite being rivals with the Patriots, Ryan was more than willing to poke fun of himself in the movie.
“That was what was so fun about it. When I read it, I was like ‘Oh my gosh.’ It was a lot of fun being on that set. I will say this – it is way more work than I thought it would be. I thought you’d go in there, rattle off a couple lines, that’d be it. ‘Oh we have to shoot that again’ – are you kidding me?” Ryan said. “I felt like a player ‘Run that play again; run that play again.’”
There’s a bit of irony in Ryan’s movie role as the Jets head coach was often critical of former safety Kerry Rhodes, who dabbled in acting and modeling. It was speculated and whispered that Rhodes was traded to Arizona last spring in part due to his off the field interests.
In his book, Ryan called Rhodes “a selfish-ass guy. He wouldn’t work and he was a Hollywood type, flashing and needing attention.”
Ryan clearly didn’t mind calling “Hollywood type” Sandler a teammate. A long-time Jets fan, Sandler gave very few hints about Ryan’s role in the movie other than he plays an avid Patriots fan and talks about Belichick and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. For Ryan, it was a great experience to be on set with Sandler.
“It was a blast, really watching Adam Sandler,” Ryan said. “No. 1 he’s a funny guy, not just in movies, it was a great experience.”
Follow Jets beat writer Kristian Dyer on Twitter @KristianRDyer.
