Inside Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler’s Friendship: ‘We Must Have Been Real Family in Another Life’

Murder Mystery 2 marks the third time the pair have starred in a film together, but their friendship dates back to the early '90s

Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. PHOTO: STEVE GRANITZ/WIREIMAGE

Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston go way back.

The Murder Mystery costars — who reunite for Murder Mystery 2, the Paris-set sequel to their 2019 hit — first appeared together on the big screen in 2011's Just Go with It.

But they'd already known each other for 20 years before that, having "met at Jerry's Deli in 1990-91," Aniston, 54, said in 2019 during a joint appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! as Sandler, 56, explained that she was dating a friend of his at the time: "It was fun. We had breakfast together."

"We were friends before Friends," Aniston added. "[We love each other]. We must have been real family in another life."

Sandler agreed. "We're so comfortable with each other," he told Jimmy Kimmel of Aniston, who even attended his daughter Sunny's bat mitzvah last year. "She knows my family and I know hers."

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Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler in Just Go with It (2011). SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT

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In December 2021, Sandler opened up about his friendship with the Emmy-winning actress and how she "tag-teams" with his wife Jackie to help him live a healthier lifestyle.

"[Jennifer is] certainly not afraid to have me show up on a set, and in my trailer is a whole bunch of whatever shake I should be drinking and it's usually green," he joked to The Hollywood Reporter. "And I actually drink it so I can look her in the eye."

"She and my wife have a nice time tag-teaming to try to make me a healthier human being. Like, they want me to stretch more — eventually be able to touch my toes, which I'm about 9 inches away from," Sandler shared.

Added the Saturday Night Live alum, "But Jen's also just funny as hell, and she makes you so happy. When we go to parties with her, there's no leaving the party. At 1 in the morning, I'll say to my wife, 'We're going to keep going, huh?' "

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Back in January 2020, Aniston gave a special nod to her longtime friend while accepting her trophy at that year's SAG Awards, shouting out his performance in Uncut Gems.

"Oh, Adam Sandler, your performance is extraordinary, your magic is real, buddy. I love you," she said onstage.

In a sweet post on Instagram, Sandler praised Aniston, captioning a photo of her standing on the SAG Awards stage accepting her honor for outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series, for her role on AppleTV's The Morning Show.

"Congrats to the great @jenniferaniston for her SAG award and her just being the best," wrote The Wedding Singer actor.

In 2011, Aniston and Sandler both starred in Just Go With It, a romantic comedy about a plastic surgeon, played by Sandler, who pretends to be married to his office manager, played by Aniston, in order to enjoy dating other women — with no strings attached.

Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler in Murder Mystery 2 (2023). SCOTT YAMANO/NETFLIX

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They play love interests again in Murder Mystery and its sequel, in the form of a married couple caught in the middle of a whodunnit — and the longtime pals previously shared a funny story about preparing for their kissing scenes in the first film.

"She sends me texts, 'Nine days till kissing — here it comes,' " Sandler told the Associated Press in 2019.

However, the Horrible Bosses actress went on to share that before the cameras started rolling, she made sure Sandler did one very important thing to prepare.

"I did have him learn to oil the beard up a little bit," she shared before he added, "Yeah, she wanted me to have a nice, soft beard."