Film

The Waterboy

Name: The Waterboy
Genre: Comedy
Released: 1998
Cast: Adam Sandler, Kathy Bates, Henry Winkler, Fairuza Balk, Jerry Reed

Slapstick
Light-hearted

A 1998 comedy where Adam Sandler's sheltered mama's boy discovers he's a natural tackling machine. It's broad, silly, and deeply invested in the joy of watching an underdog explode through opponents. Perfect if you like your sports movies dumb in the best way—sincere about football, ridiculous about everything else.

TMDb rating

3.0

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love broad, sweet-natured slapstick built around one oddball performer who commits completely to a ridiculous premise, the kind of comedy where the silliness is the point.

Skip it if you find Sandler's gentle, mumbling sweetness grating or want sharp, restrained jokes; the humor is loud, repetitive and leans on a single gag more than once.

What it asks of you: Ninety brisk minutes with no homework: the plot is a straight line of sports-movie beats, played loud and fast, so you just sit back and let it run.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Happy Gilmore1996

Sandler's other sports comedy masterpiece: a rage-fueled golfer learning to channel his anger into excellence. Same formula, same joy, same commitment to the absurd.

But If you found Sandler's brand of comedy dated or grating in the '90s, this won't change your mind. It's aggressively silly.

DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story2004

Vince Vaughn leads an underdog team to glory with the same mix of genuine sports logic and complete nonsense. Funny, affectionate, and utterly unafraid to be dumb.

But The humour is very broad and very straight-faced about absurd premises. If you don't buy into that tone, it's a long 92 minutes.

Rocky1976

The original underdog sports triumph. Less comedy, more heart, but the same structure: nobody believes in him, training montage, impossible odds, transcendence through grit.

But It's serious where Waterboy is ridiculous. If you want laughs, you'll be waiting for a tone that never arrives.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Waterboy

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Benchwarmers2006

Both are about social outcasts using physical competition to escape humiliation. Both take this premise with complete sincerity, no winking. Both believe that proving yourself through sport matters.

Rob Schneider, David Spade, and Jon Lovitz reclaim their childhood honour through playground baseball. Pure Sandler-era comedy DNA—sweaty, earnest, completely unironic about male anxiety and redemption.

But It's a spiritual cousin rather than a spiritual successor; the comedy is cruder and less focused. Some of it lands like a punch, some like a pratfall.

Remember the Titans2000

A football team learning to overcome prejudice and play together. Inspirational in the way Waterboy is—earnest about the sport, uplifting about the people.

But It trades comedy for genuine emotion. Sandler fans expecting laughs will find themselves moved instead, which isn't what you signed up for.

Necessary Roughness1991

Scott Bakula leads a ragtag college football team to improbable victory. Same era, same spirit—sports movie sincerity wrapped around completely ridiculous circumstances.

But It's a little more earnest and less funny than Waterboy. The comedy is gentler, which some will appreciate and others will find bland.

The Replacements2000

Keanu Reeves leads replacement players through the NFL. Commitment to stupid premises, genuine sports action, and characters you actually root for.

But The satire sometimes overshadows the heart. It's trying to say something about labour and greed, and that can feel at odds with the fun.

Major League1989

A ragtag baseball team defies expectations. It's got the same mix of sports credibility and comedic desperation, with genuinely good-natured ensemble energy.

But It's less about one hero's transformation and more about a team dynamic. If you want to watch one guy become unstoppable, this spreads the focus.

Goon2012

Seann William Scott as a hockey enforcer finding dignity in brutality. It's funny and surprisingly moving—the same arc as Waterboy but with real pathos underneath.

But It's violent and darker than Waterboy. The tone shifts toward genuine emotion in ways that might feel jarring if you wanted pure comedy.

Any Given Sunday1999

Oliver Stone's epic sports dramedy. Sprawling, ambitious, packed with underdog energy and a similar belief that football is a stage for human triumph.

But At three hours, it's bloated and self-important. Some scenes work brilliantly; others feel like Stone indulging himself. You'll never quite know which one you're in.

Every Which Way but Loose1978

Both commit completely to absurd premises without irony. Both are about lowborn men finding respect through absurd circumstances. Both movies trust that sincerity, however goofy, can move you.

Clint Eastwood as a trucker fighting for his dignity alongside an orangutan. It's a shaggy, weird film that has no business working, but it does—warm, funny, genuinely weird in a way that feels American.

But It's slow and episodic. The orangutan is charming but not a substitute for plot momentum. You have to be okay with films that meander toward their points.

Raging Bull1980

Both films build around the idea that a man's hidden rage, expressed through sport, defines his destiny. Waterboy is the fairy tale; Raging Bull is the nightmare. Same premise, opposite moral.

Scorsese's black-and-white boxing epic. It's the dark mirror to Waterboy's triumph—a man's rage channelled into sport, but it destroys him instead of saving him. Brutally beautiful.

But It's grim, formally challenging, and slow. No laughs, no joy—just the damage a champion can do. If Waterboy is cathartic, this is purgatorial.