49 Fun Facts About The Wedding Singer

In what year was The Wedding Singer released in cinemas?

The Wedding Singer opened in US cinemas on February 13, 1998, the day before Valentine's Day, and debuted in second place at the box office that weekend.

Who directed The Wedding Singer?

Frank Coraci directed The Wedding Singer, his first studio feature; he and Sandler had been friends since film school, and he went on to direct The Waterboy and Click.

In which year is The Wedding Singer set?

The Wedding Singer is set in 1985; Robbie opens the film singing Dead or Alive's 'You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)', a 1985 hit, and Glenn drives a DeLorean.

Robbie Hart plies his trade in which New Jersey town?

Robbie Hart works in Ridgefield, New Jersey, the Bergen County town where the film sets his wedding gigs; the Broadway musical kept the same setting.

What job does Julia Sullivan have when she meets Robbie?

A new waitress at the reception hall where he performs; writer Tim Herlihy said test audiences did not miss Sandler in the scenes she carried alone.

Who plays Julia Sullivan?

Drew Barrymore plays Julia Sullivan; she had approached Sandler about working together, and The Wedding Singer became the first of three films the two made as a pair.

Julia's fiancé Glenn Gulia makes his money doing what?

Glenn Gulia makes his money in bond investing; played by Matthew Glave, he flaunts his wealth and, on a double date, admits to Robbie that he cheats on Julia and will keep doing so.

Who breaks the news to Robbie, moments before the ceremony, that Linda is not coming?

Kate is played by Jodi Thelen and her husband Andy by Frank Sivero. Linda later explains she wanted the would-be rock star, not a wedding singer.

Why does Linda say she jilted Robbie?

She wanted the rock star he planned to be, not a wedding singer; Angela Featherstone's Linda later turns up wanting him back and answers his door claiming to be his fiancée just as Julia arrives.

Which frequent Sandler collaborator plays Robbie's best friend Sammy?

Allen Covert plays Sammy; a college friend of Sandler's, he has appeared in most Happy Madison films and took the lead in Grandma's Boy in 2006.

Christine Taylor, who plays Julia's cousin Holly, was known for playing which TV character on film?

Christine Taylor played Marcia Brady in The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) and A Very Brady Sequel (1996); in The Wedding Singer she is Julia's man-hungry cousin Holly.

In The Wedding Singer, Alexis Arquette's keyboardist in Robbie's band is an impersonation of which flamboyant 1980s pop star?

Boy George said he found the impersonation, complete with 'Do You Really Want to Hurt Me', hilarious; Arquette was the sibling of Rosanna, Patricia and David.

Which 1979 hip-hop classic does Robbie's elderly singing student Rosie perform at her anniversary party?

Rosie, played by Ellen Albertini Dow, raps the Sugarhill Gang's 1979 hit 'Rapper's Delight' at her anniversary party; her version appears on the film's soundtrack album.

Which wedding anniversary does Robbie's singing student Rosie celebrate late in the film?

Rosie celebrates her 50th wedding anniversary; Robbie, who has been giving her singing lessons in exchange for meatballs, performs with her at the party.

Which real rock star plays himself on the flight and helps Robbie win Julia back?

Billy Idol plays himself, seated in first class on the flight; he helps Robbie serenade Julia over the intercom and keeps Glenn away. His own 'White Wedding' is on the soundtrack album.

What is the name of the song Robbie writes for Julia and sings over the plane's intercom?

'Grow Old with You', written by Sandler and Tim Herlihy, is the ballad Robbie sings to Julia over the plane's intercom; it appears on the film's soundtrack and in the stage musical.

Where do the passengers confine Glenn after he tries to attack Robbie on the plane?

Glenn is shoved into an airplane lavatory, and the flight attendants and a first-class passenger hold the door while Robbie finishes his song and kisses Julia.

In The Wedding Singer, where do Julia and Glenn plan to elope after Julia finds Linda answering Robbie's door?

Las Vegas; Robbie boards the same flight without knowing it, and the musical moves the whole showdown into a Vegas chapel full of celebrity impersonators.

Who makes an uncredited cameo as David Veltri, the drunken best man at the opening wedding?

Steve Buscemi plays David Veltri, the drunken best man, in an uncredited cameo; he and Sandler had first worked together on Airheads in 1994.

Jon Lovitz reprised his Wedding Singer role as Jimmie Moore in an episode of which sitcom?

Jon Lovitz reprised Jimmie Moore, Robbie's rival wedding singer, on The Goldbergs, the ABC sitcom set in 1980-something, in an episode that paid tribute to the film.

Which SNL veteran plays Mr. Simms, the bank manager Robbie asks for a job?

Kevin Nealon, an SNL cast member alongside Sandler, plays Mr. Simms, the bank manager who interviews Robbie after he decides he needs a steady income; Robbie does not get the job.

Which actress plays Julia's mother Angie in The Wedding Singer, having also played Judy Geller, Ross and Monica's mother, on Friends?

Christina Pickles played Judy Geller across the entire ten-year run of Friends; in the film Julia confides in Angie that she no longer loves Glenn.

Roughly what was The Wedding Singer's production budget?

The Wedding Singer's production budget was about $18 million, a sum its US opening weekend alone exceeded.

The Wedding Singer opened in second place at the US box office behind which holdover?

Titanic, still number one two months into its run, kept The Wedding Singer in second place over the Valentine's weekend of February 13-15, 1998; Sandler's film opened with about $18.8 million.

Which studio released The Wedding Singer?

New Line Cinema, which had released Austin Powers the year before, distributed The Wedding Singer; Robert Simonds and Jack Giarraputo produced it for the studio.

Which radio show inspired Tim Herlihy to set the film in the 1980s?

Sandler had pitched a comedy about a wedding singer left at the altar; Herlihy said his own recent marriage changed the tone of the script.

Which future Knocked Up director did uncredited rewrites on the script with Sandler?

Judd Apatow, Sandler's former roommate, did uncredited rewrites on the script; he went on to direct The 40-Year-Old Virgin in 2005 and Knocked Up in 2007.

Sandler and the film's director first became friends as students at which college?

Sandler and the director met as students at NYU, where Sandler graduated from the Tisch School of the Arts in 1988; the actor who plays Sammy was a classmate there too.

Screenwriter Tim Herlihy makes a cameo as which character?

Fellow screenwriter Steven Brill plays Glenn's buddy, and model Shanna Moakler is a flight attendant.

The bar mitzvah boy is played by Michael Shuman, who grew up to join which rock band?

Michael 'Mikey Shoes' Shuman, the bar mitzvah boy, grew up to join Queens of the Stone Age as bassist in 2007 and played on ...Like Clockwork and Villains.

Which Sandler-and-Herlihy song, sung by a heartbroken Robbie, appears on the first soundtrack album?

'Somebody Kill Me', written by Sandler and Tim Herlihy, is the song Robbie sings to Julia about Linda; Sandler's performance of it appears on the first Wedding Singer soundtrack album.

How many soundtrack albums were released for The Wedding Singer?

Two soundtrack albums were released in 1998, Volume 1 and Volume 2; both leaned on new wave, with the Smiths, New Order, the Psychedelic Furs, Spandau Ballet and Depeche Mode among the artists.

On the soundtrack, 'Video Killed the Radio Star' is performed not by the Buggles but by which 1990s band?

It opens the first album. Most other tracks used the original 80s recordings rather than the actors' versions heard in the film.

Which 1980 J. Geils Band song does Robbie snarl through at a wedding after being jilted?

'Love Stinks', a 1980 single from the J. Geils Band album of the same name, is the song a jilted Robbie performs while heckling the guests at his first gig back.

In which year did the stage musical of The Wedding Singer open on Broadway?

2006: the musical opened on Broadway on April 27 and closed on New Year's Eve after 284 performances; a US national tour followed.

Who wrote the music for the Broadway musical?

Matthew Sklar composed the music for the 2006 Broadway musical; he and his lyricist later wrote the scores for Elf (2010) and The Prom (2018).

Who played Robbie in the original Broadway cast, earning a Tony nomination?

Stephen Lynch, a stand-up known for comic songs, made his Broadway debut as Robbie and was nominated for the 2006 Tony for Best Actor in a Musical; Laura Benanti played Julia.

How many Tony Award nominations did the Broadway production receive?

Five Tony nominations in 2006: Best Musical, Book, Original Score, Leading Actor in a Musical and Choreography; it won none, in a year Jersey Boys took Best Musical.

Before Broadway, the musical had its world premiere at the 5th Avenue Theatre in which city?

Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre, a frequent Broadway tryout house (Hairspray started there in 2002), hosted The Wedding Singer's world premiere in early 2006 before the move to New York.

Which 2004 romantic comedy set in Hawaii reunited The Wedding Singer's two leads?

50 First Dates, directed by Peter Segal, carries an end-credits dedication to Sandler's father Stanley, who died in 2003.

What was the 2014 safari comedy, the third film pairing The Wedding Singer's leads, called?

Blended, a 2014 comedy set at a South African safari resort, was the third Sandler-Barrymore film and reunited them with The Wedding Singer's director; it grossed about $128 million on a $40 million budget.

In The Wedding Singer musical, the Nevada chapel showdown features impersonators of which US president?

A Ronald Reagan impersonator, alongside Mr. T and Imelda Marcos lookalikes, is among the celebrity impersonators in the chapel scene, where Robbie finally sings to Julia and wins her back.

Sandler was a cast member of Saturday Night Live during which years?

Sandler was on Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1995, joining as a writer before becoming a featured player; he and Chris Farley were let go in 1995. His 2019 hosting return earned an Emmy nomination.

Which director did Frank Coraci cite as an important influence on The Wedding Singer?

Coraci said he could finally look back on his own heartbreak and let it be funny.

Why was Drew Barrymore kept from reading or hearing the film's songs until the first shoot?

Sandler also made her laugh out of context so that her on-camera laughs stayed real even after long days.

Between which dates did principal photography on The Wedding Singer take place in California?

The film opened in cinemas less than a year later, in February 1998.

Who performs 'Ladies' Night' on the film's soundtrack in place of Kool & the Gang?

Jon Lovitz, uncredited in the film as Robbie's smarmy rival Jimmie Moore, sings 'Ladies' Night' on the film's soundtrack in place of Kool & the Gang's 1979 original.

At which Broadway theatre did The Wedding Singer musical play its original run?

The Wedding Singer played the Al Hirschfeld Theatre on West 45th Street, the former Martin Beck Theatre, renamed in 2003; John Rando directed and Rob Ashford choreographed.

Who wrote the lyrics for The Wedding Singer musical and co-wrote its book with Tim Herlihy?

Chad Beguelin wrote the lyrics and co-wrote the book with Tim Herlihy, earning Tony nominations for both; he later wrote the lyrics for Elf, Aladdin and The Prom.