Christopher McDonald Talks Bills Mafia Fandom, Adam Sandler, Happy Gilmore 2 & More! | Buffalo Bills

Christopher McDonald Talks Bills Mafia Fandom, Adam Sandler, Happy Gilmore 2 & More! | Buffalo Bills

And you’re going to be at the game this weekend. Go Bills. I’m going to the Yeah, going to the Saints game. Welcome into this week’s episode of You Heard, where athletes, celebrities, and influencers help us get ready for Sunday. We are so fired up to be joined by Bill’s Mafia member Chris McDonald in this week’s episode. You guys know him for movies like Happy Gilmore, Happy Gilmore 2 as Shooter McGavin. nominated for several awards across several different movies and shows he’s been a part of. Thelma and Louise, Greece 2, Leave It to Beaver, Hacks, and much more. Chris, thanks for being on with us today. Thank you. Thanks to be here. Okay, pleasure. You’re from New York City. How’d you become a Bills fan? Uh, well, I stopped being a Jets fan. Don’t be hating. No hating now. Um, because we moved to upstate New York and uh when I was about uh 13, I think. Okay. And um my whole family lived there. I stayed there a long time, loved it, and my brother Jim turned me on to the Buffalo Bills and I went, “Oh, yeah. Okay, these guys rock. They’re close.” Um, sorry, Joe name. Still love you, but no. So, became a Bills fan right then and we used to go daytime games mostly. It was great. That’s awesome. Who are some of the first few players that really you really gravitated towards that you thought, “Okay, I can I can get with cheering for this team because they’re so fun to watch.” Well, Daryl Tally was fun to watch. Oh my god, what a what a beast he is. Uh Jim Kelly, of course, that’s first off the top. Um but that was like a little bit later. First, it started out with OJ, the great the great players, the great coaching. Um but boy, the the team now is what is what really blows my mind how good they are and uh how close we get and how much we’re praying that this is the year. I mean, after these the first three games so far, we’re like hitting it out of the park, baby. Yes, it is awesome. Speaking of the 2025 version of the Buffalo Bills, what do you love most about this team? First of all, Josh Allen, number 17, is just not going to just just he just he ain’t got no quitting them, and he’s always been that way. But, uh, since he’s married, he’s even got more drive, it seems. He’s kind of like he’s pinpointing things. He’s not messing around. And uh I just I just hope that uh he stays with us healthy and uh because you know he’s a target and they’re always going to try to take that man down because he’s fast off. He can run, he can throw of course and uh and but he runs that that offense like this the game that we just saw the first game when they came back 15 points down in the fourth quarter was sick. Um Coleman just killed it too. Have great catches. Uh just too exciting. I’ve watched it about four times. It’s just so much fun to watch the Bills get back up there. win 4140. Oh yeah, it was just amazing. Okay, you’ve watched that first game about four times. What type of fan are you in the middle of games? Type of fan I am, uh, I pray. Um, I know that we were down a lot, Derek Henry’s too damn good. Um, but then, uh, but then who came up, but Ed Oliver with that with that shot right there. The ball came out, we recovered. What a game changer that was. So, well done number 91. Uh, let’s see. Uh what else? What kind of a fan I am? I am a fan that is jumping out of my seat when I’m there. I’m lucky enough when I go now to go to JK’s uh suite, which is pretty nice. And uh watch it from there. But uh and I go out with my brothers and we just sit right JK’s row, which is looking right down on the field, mid, you know, 50 yard line. It’s kind of perfect. So, but I’m one of those screaming guys. Yeah, that’s We need the screaming people at the games. It just makes for a better environment. You got to be loud when the opposing offense is on the field. Buffalo Buffalo. I love that. That’s right. What is your favorite part about coming into Buffalo for games and just getting to experience all of Bill’s Mafia? You you seem like, you know, just a perfect member of Bill’s Mafia. They asked me to go and jump and fall on the picnic table. I went, “No, I got a thing. I got to go.” Uh because I can’t do that. I can’t hurt the instrument as they say. But the best thing is tailgating. I got to say the tailgating with seeing your friends. You see them every game. Um every game that I go I wrap my hands around so many you lovely people that are Bill’s fans and uh uh is it still on? I hope yes. Still working. Good. I’m I’m I’m technically uh you know not that great but uh with this stuff but uh I just I just love love the the force of the mafia that comes in. They just don’t mess around. It is it is Buffalo country. You’re in our house. Watch yourself because we’re going to win. And that’s the kind of feeling everybody’s got to be when it’s like this is the the highlight of their week. And uh so I just I embrace all of that. It’s fantastic when you and when when you’re with at JK’s little suite of or uh you see that he’s got they got a couple of buses around and it’s just really cool people and it’s a great hang. All right. You mentioned JK. You started to follow the Bills when you were young because of your brother and Jim Kelly was one of the players that you really fell in love with the game because of. How did the friendship form form with Jim Kelly? Oh, that’s a fun story actually. Uh Jim Kelly and I were sitting were invited to to be in this car race in Long Beach, California. And uh I had no idea he was going to be there, but there’s about, you know, there’s about 15 of us, maybe a little bit more, maybe 20. And we’re sitting around a big table. Oh my god, that’s Jim Kelly. And he’s sitting like three down from me. And so we’re going around the room and we’re like saying like, “Yeah, Marcus Whiteman, I’m, you know, the linebacker for the whatever.” And they and they have like they have like Olympic stars. They have they have uh very fast females who are really great Olympic athletes also. Darren Torres, she won the the first one I was in. Um great athlete. Uh but it got to me and I went, I’m Jim Kelly. I play a little football. And he said, “What a dork. Who is this guy? And because we hugged it out and we’ve been friends ever since. It was a it was a blast. That that was a great thing. I did it three times. I won it once and then they invite you to come back and start at the back and pick people off. So, it’s was great great fun for me. Jim Kelly is somebody who, you know, poured his heart and soul into the Bills while he was a part of this team, but then decided to put down roots in Buffalo afterwards and still does so much for Buffalo as a community, the the golf tournament, the football camps that he does. What does that say about the type of person that Jim Kelly is? Well, Jim Kelly is a rare bird in that holy area. You’ve mentioned the golf tournaments. Been doing it for 30 something years. I’ve been to like 28 of them. Um I never want to miss it cuz talk about a talk about a party. What a party. It’s crazy. It’s a It’s a party interrupted by golf pretty much, but it raises great money for Kelly for kids. And he’s been doing that for so long. And he’s got everybody so loyal. They come out. they give their time and have a blast. Won that twice, too, which was awesome. I played with a great team and um but it it’s just they’re just he’s his heart is big as Texas. He’s he’s uh had a lot of pain in his life. He went through the whole thing with him with his with his health issues and uh he just came through another one with his grandson. Yeah. And it’s just it’s just he’s the kind of guy he’s uh he’s on the right side of of of everything and he he’s a blessed man and I just think anybody that can come from the the work that he had done in his body to keep him going uh and how strong he is right now is pretty incredible and um I’m I’m glad to call him a dear friend. It is really cool to be in his presence. you you feel the positivity that radiates from him and when you know his story and the things that he’s walked through. It’s the type of person that you walk away from a conversation and you think I want to learn how to be more like Jim Kelly. I want to learn to to love the way that he loves. That’s what I’ve always felt in in the interactions that I’ve had with him and we are so lucky as Bills fans to like have him a part of the Bills Legends community. That’s well said. That’s that’s him to a tea. He’s uh he’s one you look up to and I I’ve taken a lot of his great attributes and put him in my life as well because he’s he’s he does it all. He really does. He’s uh he’s just great to hang out with and like I say, he’s almost like a brother now. So that’s awesome. He’s very kind to my brothers, too, who are all uh big big big football bills. It’s Bills. It’s awesome. I should just put my Bills hat on, get it over with. Yeah, let’s go. Bills. I like it. It looks good. It looks good. Uh you mentioned you mentioned winning Jim Kelly’s tournament twice. You mentioned the golf. Did your golf game come before Happy Gilmore or was Happy Gilmore the introduction into golf for you? Well, since Happy Gilmore was the first one was 29 years ago. I believe it was Happy Gilmore that got me the notice. Yeah. Um but uh like I said, I I I had done Happy Gilmore and then we met physically doing that that car race in Long Beach and then that was it. He said, “You got to come up and play.” And I said, “Oh yeah, it’s flying home for me. It’s fantastic. Upstate New York, baby. It’s awesome. Thinking back to uh Happy Gilmore, now what has turned into Happy Gilmore 2. What was the best part of about being in those two movies? Well, the first one was amazing because I got to be the the the villain that everybody loved to hate and uh it’s it’s like the gift that keeps on giving. I walk anywhere. It’s like all that kind of stuff because they they love him because he’s such an eagle maniac. And there’s a lot of that in everybody, I think. Um, but, uh, he was letting it, he was, letting it ride out there. So, it was so much fun to shoot the first one. The second one, you know, 29 years later, I find out I’m in a mental institution for 29 years. Um, that made me laugh out loud when I read the script for the first time. But everything was s so uh, super uh, you know, secret. I had to be there were cameras on me. I couldn’t write. I couldn’t take a picture of anything. I was like, okay. And the script turned out great. But the best thing about it, of course, was being again reunited with Adam and Adam Sandler’s one of the, you know, like Jim Kelly, he’s got a heart as big as Texas, too. He’s a great guy. And uh we had so much fun doing it. And then to to meet all the the great golfers. I’m going today to the Ryder Club uh Ryder Cup. And I’m going to see see boys that are that that were in the movie that that I call friends and they call me friends. It’s it’s fantastic. But some of them on the wrong side, but I will root for America. But uh you know I was in Ireland not too long ago making a movie and uh it was like two weeks ago and Rory won the Irish Open again which was amazing and um anyway I just I I I feel blessed with that uh with having that kind of proximity to those guys. So I’ll walk around and do their thing not not bother them. Today’s a big day. Um uh but mostly uh I’ll I’ll stay till Friday and then uh I’ll escape and come up to Buffalo and get ready for the big game. The Saints. How cool is it? a movie like that, you get so much crossover with so many different worlds from, you know, football players are in this movie, musical artists are in Happy Gilmore 2, you’ve got golfers in Happy Gilmore 2. It was the who’s who when you step onto that set. How cool is that for you? It was so cool. I mean, I would I I love that Eminem was in it. Um, my derriè was real. I think he had a plastic one made for his derriè, but everybody wanted to show their their their tush. I don’t know why Sandler wanted me to to do it. I said, “Okay, okay, America, here it comes.” And uh that was a moment that we had to giggle through, but uh they left it in, thank God. So, it’s uh it was pretty funny. Um he’s also super generous. Uh Adam um he let me have my daughter. She was in the scene where I about to throw the uh hot coffee into into the great the great bad guy. He was so good. Oh my god. uh Benny Benny Safi and um he uh so he let me put my daughter in there and it was so great. She got to bring the coffee in. It was nice and she’s an actor and uh so it’s kind of like that. It was a family event. He had his daughters in it, his wife in it and everyone had anyone who was on the crew back back in the day had their kids in it. So I had to ask and he was kind enough to let me do that and I thought that was awesome. I’m probably drifting from your question. No, I like it. It’s stories about being on set in that movie. When Adam Sandler asks you to do something in a movie, are you just like, “Yes, whatever you want. I know it’s going to be gold because you make gold.” I made a mistake uh of uh playing basketball with Adam and uh I was a pretty good basketball player and um I don’t think he was too happy when I won, but it wasn’t a big deal. Uh but he did invite me one time. I went to to one of his sets of early on has all of his buddies in. is it would be great to have Shooter sitting on the bus and do a little cameo and I couldn’t and I couldn’t and I I probably could if I worked out my schedule better, but um then he never asked for another, you know, 29 years. So, I’ve learned my lesson. Uh I feel um I feel that it’s we’re back to normal now and he’s on the road right now doing um doing a really cool thing. Uh he’s doing his show and this show is called My Best Friend and he’s going to hit Buffalo as a matter of fact. And I wanted to be He was just here. He was just here and people said it was incredible. I have my schedule allowed. I wanted to go out. He said, “Dude, you got to get out. Shoot. You got to get out and come and like what would I do? I can’t, you know, I can’t play guitar like you, but I can, you know, play the harmonica maybe.” So anyway, but right now he’s he’s enjoying a really interesting time because he’s got this movie Rake Jay Kelly with with Clooney. Okay. and uh his performance is very it’s like something we’ve never seen before, but maybe little clippets of it, but he’s got his heart is showing and there’s a lot of good uh PR about how he might even get a nomination for an Oscar because so he’s up right now selling the movie over in London, I think. So, very cool. Pretty cool. Yeah. So, I think one person was missing from Happy Gilmore 2. I think it was Josh Allen. How good do you think he would have been in that movie? Well, Josh Allen’s a great athlete. He’s a great stick, I’m sure, on the golf course. Um, but uh, yeah, I I I don’t know if he I don’t know if he was even available because he’s got so many things going on, so many irons in the in the fire. Um, uh, and plus the fact that Sandler’s not a not a Bills fan. Come on. Come over to the dark side. It’s okay, though. Yeah, he’s he’s uh he’s a different team. I want to mention it, but uh, but what’s what’s great about Josh Allen is that he could do anything. He would have been great. And the only other one we missed who turned us down was was Tiger Woods. I guess he was busy or something. But what great to have him in, right? He’s such he’s such a great dude also. And uh but man, I I’m just over the moon happy for for our our quarterback. He is something else. And I say it from the bottom. I know I speak for all Bill’s mafia fans saying that he is like he’s a godsend like Jim Kelly was. He’s a godsend for the team right now. He runs it beautifully. The offense is killer. The defense is stepping up now. And it’s just an exciting time to be a Bills fan. It is a very exciting time to be a Bill Bills fan. If you and Josh Allen did a movie together, what would be the plot? We’re living in your world here. Okay. It’d be a western cuz he’s got that good beard. He can do that. I can’t grow a beard like that. So, we need somebody to do it. No, I could do a mustache, but the beard nah. And then we’d be on horses and we’d go out into the middle of the Wyoming countryside and we’d save these um women. Yeah, that’s what we do. We’d save women from being from being captured by the Indians. Yeah, that’s it. And then we’d save them and we’d get out there by the hair of our chinny chin chin. And then we find out we’ve fell in love with these women. And his wife could be in it cuz she’s an awesome actor. And uh I’d put my wife into it. So we would get in trouble. I love it. So, the family members are in the movie. That sounds like it’s it’s going to win a bunch of awards. I already see it. Yeah. Yeah. It’s a process where Yeah, sure it is. Okay. If you were to live Josh Allen’s real life for a day, what would you do? I’d do what he does. I’d go to hospitals and give back. I I’ I love like St. Jude’s uh that what they do for kids with cancer. They don’t have a shot in life. And you know, you go out and you give like a Make a Wish Foundation thing like Jim Kelly does with Kelly for kids to make sure they have the right kind of housing so they and and not a penny comes out of their pocket that they can actually get their kids the the uh medical attention they need. And um I would do that because uh it’s a gift to be as highly respected and you know and and paid and and his value is huge but he gives back like that. So I I would give back like that. I would I would go do even more than I do and I do a lot. Most of my golf that I play now is all for charity stuff. So, uh it’s quite fun. We do it for the military. We do it for, you know, the kids with cancer. The St. Jude Patrick Warbertton’s event, it’s, you know, Kelly for kids and and uh anytime that the time there there’s a space and they they they invite me and I don’t I have a window open, I’m there. So, that’s awesome. Yeah. Jumping back into the movies and the shows you’ve been a part of so much. Hacks is a new one that a lot of people love that’s been nominated for several awards. You also were a part of Leave It to Be There Beaver, Thelma and Louise, just to name a few. What’s been the best project in your mind that you’ve been a part of? Well, you mentioned one of my favorites. Thelma and Louise was an incredible experience um working with the great Ridley Scott. Um, but there was another one called Quiz Show that Robert Redford, rest in peace, uh, uh, directed called Quiz Show where I worked with great people. Even Martis Gorsi was in that movie and, you know, John Couturo and and Ray Fines and and, um, it’s it was just one of those those those great experiences. But um but the Louise blew the doors open for for me because uh the guy was such a jerk that uh his wife uh either had to turn around and come home to him or you know drive over the cliff and she chose the cliff. So uh I gave me cart blanch to be a little bit like woo out there as kind of a jerk, you know. But I know people that don’t like that. I spend a lot of time in airports. I fly a lot and I just I love to like cover my face up and put a mask on or something and watch human activity. bunch of choices, what they trying to figure out what they do in life, what can I steal from life that that that is I’ve never seen that before. That is absolutely crazy. Um, and just just that feeds an actor. So, that kind of stuff that just How do you How do you jump into that mindset though? You you are super nice. How do you jump into the tough guy, mean guy mindset to play on screen? Uh, it’s a joy. It’s just a it’s just a layer. We all have it in us, I think. But I I just when when it’s on the page and you can take it and just run with it, it is uh it’s a real gift. And and and when Ridley said you could come and you could come and be and be this character um and play against Gina Davis, who was a love uh okay, we were we were engaged uh four years prior to that we broke up because she was in love with Jeff Goldlum. We’ll be right back after these messages. getting a little too personal here, but but anyway, it was really really odd that uh I I got that role and then uh I mean it wasn’t odd, but it was great that I got it. Then I took it to lunch and we hugged it out and says, “Okay, yeah, we took some uh you know, wedding pictures for the the set decoration to show that we were married in fact and it was like, wow, what a crazy turn of events that was.” But uh he gives you the freedom really gives you the freedom to go and and just go crazy. There was a scene where I was I was Brad Pit and I were on the stairs and he was looking at him and he came down and he’s like, “I like your wife.” He he had lived that I would I would I think if they didn’t have those guys pulling me, I would have gone for the show. I would have him. It was I mean of course not at the same time I wanted I would ben them coming out of my body. It was really fun and really challenging and really um just I feel blessed to have done it. And then, like I said, I met with all kinds of great directions and I’ve been working ever since. I think a lot of Bill’s fans know you’re a member of Bill’s Mafia, know that you ride with this team, but some fans may not know that you went to Hobart College as a school. That’s a very small school, and it’s close to Buffalo in Geneva. How did you find yourself going to that school? Uh, that was pretty easy. It’s a very small school, but it’s a liberal arts school that has like it’s up above. It’s like, you know, it’s it’s a top 20 out there. It’s just got great great uh uh teachers and and great curriculum that you can choose all different stuff from. It was a game changer for me. I was uh recruited as a football player. Yeah. I was a wide receiver and a defensive back and I was fast and I was, you know, young and and uh our team, our football team was pretty dang good. So, uh our lacrosse team’s even better. Our soccer team is awesome. Um, and our hockey team has won three in a row or four in a row, I think. Uh, they’re they’re amazing. So, it’s a very it’s got a good sports uh base there. But it’s it’s what what changed my life was they there was a thing called you go and you got a chance to go to some place uh like London to become, you know, one of those fall term things. Yep. And I went, “Oh god, that would be so much fun.” So, I didn’t go to football that year. I went with them. I was chosen and I went to London and I discovered the West End Theater and I thought, “Oh god, I was going to go there to be a I was going to Hobart to be a dentist.” Yikes. That’s not a good life for me. Anyway, uh and then I uh you know, I got this uh this bug to be to be an actor and I came back and did some plays at Hobart and changed my uh my curriculum to to English because there wasn’t really a theater department. And uh and and in my um gratitude to the school, I recently uh was the principal donor for new theater there. So, have all the the good stuff going on. So, it was a great it’s a great school and I I highly recommend to anybody who’s listening here. If your kids need to go someplace, William Smith is pretty sweet. I love it. So, from Hobart to discovering you want to be an actor to being in plays to being in movies and TV shows. What are you working on right now? I am doing hacks right now. I just came back from Ireland like I said when I when I saw Rory uh play. Uh I I I have the things like four things in in the in the in the can like ready to come out. I have uh uh but but but working on hacks is is a a joy because it’s so beautifully written. Yes. And the actors the two the two leads just won this year for Emmys. Um Jean Smart has won four times in a row. Yep. That’s like uh that’s almost like breaking uh breaking records time. Uh she’s amazing and that she I usually play opposite her as a love interest and friend. and and then uh Hannah Einbinder just got her due because she’s she’s the other assistant kind of uh partner now head writer on the show. Uh what a great girl she is. And I’m I get So I’m in New York right now. I’m going to go see them uh working today after I go to the writer comp. And then uh they work late. It’s hard working in these shows. I mean, you put your time in. It’s it’s it’s something. But when the writing is that good and that’s uh you know, was number one comedy last year. It was was fantastic. What a feather in their cap because so talented. So these people are so talented. It’s a it’s an honor to be playing on the same field with them. Getting to watch Hacks, one of my one of my favorite shows right now. It seems like it’s just so fun to be a part of that show and be on camera with the people that you get to be next to. It just it seems like a blast and that comes off the screen very easily. So, uh, yeah, they, yeah, they they they bring in some really really good people, too. Just to just are really funny comedians, and their deliveries are like, are you kidding me? Uh, and so I laugh out loud when I watch it as well. It’s so funny. Going to the RDER Cup, who are you cheering for? Who are some of your favorite golfers right now? Well, I’ll do it on the QT, but I’ll say hi to Rory again. I’ll say hi to, you know, say hi to JT on the American side. I know he’s there. Scotty Sheffller’s there. You know, they’re staffed. I think it’s going to be a great great Ryder Cup. It’s one of my favorite things to watch. A lot of a lot of crazy, you know, just hooping hooping up and like country, baby. And um but I I’ve had no guys on both sides, so I’ll have to like when I’m when I’m talking to them. So, but it should be quite fun. It should be uh amazing. And uh um other than that, I mean, I just I just want I want I want us to win really badly. like the the big win we had of I guess it was I don’t know maybe 12 15 years ago when they had those goofy thirds and they were down like like seven uh seven and they came back and won and it was an incredible feat. Yeah. Um but anyway, I just I just I love the event. I love the invite that I get to go today and uh it should be a lot of fun. How fun. And we can’t wait to see you here in Buffalo soon enough. Thank you so much for coming on to talk about your fandom, talk about some movies and just how close you are to Jim Kelly. It was really cool to hear some of those stories. Oh, thanks for having me. I was a a delight and uh I meant every word I said. He’s the best. I love it. I’m so Yeah. And Josh was following his suit, too. So, he’s uh he’s the bomb right now, baby. The whole team’s the bomb. So, you want to you want to finish it off with a little shuda? Shooter. Choke on that, baby. I love it. Thank you so much, Chris. Appreciate the time.

Watch as Buffalo Bills team reporter Maddy Glab interviews actor & Bills fan Christopher McDonald in this week’s episode of You Herd! Christopher talks about his longtime friendship with Bills legend Jim Kelly, his early Bills fandom, a behind the scenes look at filming Happy Gilmore 2, a future Josh Allen movie role, the 2025 Ryder Cup, working with Brad Pitt and much more!

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