'I wrote the Bear Jew for Adam Sandler': Quentin Tarantino reveals top choice for 'Inglourious Basterds' role
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Celebrated director-writer Quentin Tarantino revealed in a recent interview that he wanted Adam Sandler to play an important character in his 'Inglourious Basterds' (2009). During his appearance on Bill Maher’s Club Random podcast, the ‘Django Unchained’ director talked with fellow guest Judd Apatow and the host about his original plan. The 59-year-old also shared the reason why it didn’t work out, citing Sandler was occupied with Apatow’s 2009 flick, ‘Funny People.’
It was Sgt Donny Donowitz, aka ‘the Bear Jew’, a role that he had in mind for the actor, "I was like hanging out with [Apatow's] crew for a while. We went to a bunch of different things together." He added, "But also Freaks and Geeks had just gone off the air or it was on its way to go off the air and I had missed it, but that whole Happy Madison crowd was, like, crazy for it." Variety reports, during their conversation Apatow told that he had no idea about Tarantino’s plan to cast Sandler, "[I] wasn't aware that that was the exact time [Tarantino was] trying to use him for Inglourious Basterds."
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On this, the 'Pulp Fiction' director said, "Obviously he should've done your [movie] because of the whole thing of it. I mean, you start with the f---ing video cassette of you guys as kids. But yeah … I wrote the Bear Jew for Adam Sandler." ‘The Hateful Eight’ director went on, "When I was doing Little Nicky, he's telling me like, 'Oh man, I get to f---ing beat up Nazis with a bat? F---ing script! F---ing awesome! I can't f---ing wait!'. "[Sandler] was like telling every Jewish guy, 'I'm going to f---ing play this guy who beats up Nazis with a f---ing bat!' ".
Director even joked, "That was the problem. Seth Rogen and all the good Jews were doing Funny People. I'm killing Hitler with baseball bats and there's no good Jews available! David Krumholtz, nobody. All the good Jews were all wrapped up! I'm doing the Jewish male fantasy!" The role was finally played by able Eli Roth, who shared the screen with Brad Pitt in a Nazi-hunting group of soldiers in an imagined World War II scenario, reports People.
Tarantino and Apatow’s full episode will be available on December 18.