Adam Sandler’s Signature Style: Decoding the “Sandlercore” Phenomenon
Adam Sandler is best known for his films: lighthearted stories dominated by a carefree vibe that works precisely because it isn’t an act. The American actor and director, in fact, doesn’t act when he could. All of his most iconic characters, from Happy Gilmore to Sonny Koufax in Big Daddy, including his more serious roles in Punch-Drunk Love, Uncut Gems and Reign Over Me, carry with them a sense of radical (yet sentimental) nonchalance that, off screen, manifests most powerfully in the actor’s wardrobe.
The Rise of “Sandlercore”
In 2021, Sandler became the most Googled celebrity for his personal style, which on TikTok came to be known as “sandlercore.” Pete Davidson named him a personal style icon, and many argued that Justin Bieber’s baggy way of dressing was directly inspired by him. At the time, many compared it to the “dad style” that was hugely popular in the early post-pandemic years, but Adam Sandler’s way of dressing transcends all categorization for the simple reason that it stems from an almost zen-like indifference toward clothing.
Why Sandler’s Style Transcends Trends
Millions of men who are uninterested in fashion dress badly, but precisely because they try to look decent, they end up looking boring or inelegant. The detachment Sandler displays toward clothing actually has the same unreachable innocence of a child: clothes aren’t chosen merely for comfort, but for their color, their boldness. That’s the point at which “dressing badly” comes full circle and becomes a recognizable identity. But if you truly want to analyze it — or even replicate it (we wouldn’t recommend it, unless you too are a fundamentally unbothered American celebrity) — you’ll need to break it down into its fundamental elements.
5 Essential Elements to Dress Like Adam Sandler
1. The Random T-Shirt
That’s not a joke title: on the Drew Barrymore Show, when asked how he gets dressed in the morning, Sandler literally said “he always starts with the T-shirt and just grabs one at random.” They’re often very oversized, certainly, but they’re largely very baggy versions of what you’d find in any man’s wardrobe. Sports jerseys, striped tees, tees branded with any logo — Superman, DC Shoes, the New York Yankees, the Knicks, writing and graphics of every kind — are all valid options. There’s no great curation, and that’s the point: these are T-shirts that any mall could carry, closer to what a middle schooler might pick than what an adult would choose. The rule here is that they must have something recognizable printed on them and must never be too understated, but never too overwhelming either.
2. The Hawaiian Shirt and the Polo
@nikorazzi Adam Sandler putting in work on the court
Polos and Hawaiian shirts are a fundamental pillar of Sandler’s wardrobe. Whether it’s pink, yellow and blue palm-leaf prints, stylized pineapple patterns on white, or a leopard motif among banana leaves (no joke — he showed up like that at the Venice Film Festival last year), both communicate that you’re not in overly everyday or mundane circumstances, and that you’re enjoying your leisure time, perhaps even on a slightly more special occasion than usual.
We won’t distinguish between the two categories, both because the two pieces share a collar and all-over prints whose tropical references are explicit to the point of cliché. It’s worth noting that neither piece ever carries that vintage-chic aesthetic: in Sandler’s looks, there is no nostalgia, nor any attempt to evoke images of past elites. The colors and patterns are devoid of any artistic or visual pretension — nothing is trying to evoke or serve as a simulacrum of anything else.
3. The Basketball Shorts
This is where the colors truly explode, largely through contrast with the tops. Sandler loves wide basketball shorts — the kind that kids still wear today when they simply can’t be bothered with dress codes. It’s precisely in the shorts that two defining traits of the “sandlercore DNA” emerge: the first is that very American sense of radical comfort, whereby the right to be comfortable overrides every other social convention — a slovenliness that carries the grin of arrogance; the second is the parallel we could draw between Sandler’s tastes and those of a teenager from the early 2000s.
If today we see kids wearing, as a generational uniform, fitted black athletic jerseys and sports shorts that are very wide but above all black, it was right at the turn of the millennium that those basketball shorts in hyper-colored acetate were all the rage. The concept here isn’t about the fact that they’re shorts, but about the material and the color. It’s not essential that they be shorts — tracksuits work too: the color simply makes them more appealing based on an elementary, youthful taste for the brightest shade available.
4. The Sneakers and UGGs
Here we enter stormier territory. Sandler’s sneakers are chunky, colorful, often basketball shoes and therefore very comfortable. They’re not chosen based on hype, because they’re almost never collectible models. We’ve seen him wear Under Armour Curry 11s, Nike Sabrinas and Dunk Lows, various Hoka models, Jordan Why Not Zer0.5s and Puma Rise Nitros. They share a technical, futuristic look but are a far cry from the tasteful, retro grey sneakers that Teddy Santis or Justin Saunders would choose.
Another essential category is UGGs. Both in the boot version — worn, naturally, with acetate shorts — and in the more curious form of fur-lined moccasins. UGGs hardly need an introduction: they’re warm and comfortable, which is why half of America wears them religiously, Sandler included. In his case, if they’re a little worn-in, all the better.
5. The Outerwear
Living in New York, outerwear is essential. Here too, Sandler is not eccentric: The North Face classic Nuptse is undoubtedly his favorite jacket. What’s eccentric are the colors — again vivid or contrasting: bright fluorescent green, cream-and-black, or colorblock with navy blue and pine green panels. These jackets are often worn over Hawaiian shirts or sweatshirts. Another puffer he’s frequently been photographed in is by adidas, with almost grotesque proportions. Light windbreakers and soft-shells in more understated or colorblock tones are also present, along with the occasional other puffer jacket, always in very bold, sporty colors.
He wears so many puffer jackets that a 2013 photo of him on the street wearing a wool coat and a red scarf while (strangely but truly) eating pickles straight from the jar made quite an impression. The photo, incidentally, proves that the most casual outfits become incredible when you add a touch of more classic elegance on top.
