In December, actor and comedian Rob Schneider performed three nights of stand-up in downtown Dallas. He cursed, heckled and brought the laughs to a packed crowd, but this month he lends his voice to something a bit more family-friendly.
Norm of the North tells the story of a polar bear forced out of his home in the arctic so he heads to the Big Apple with his three lemming buddies and becomes an advertising icon. Think Alvin and the Chipmunks meets Ice Age.
Schneider plays Norm, a confident, aloof polar bear with big dreams and is surrounded by a supporting cast including Ken Jeong, Heather Graham, Gabriel Iglesias and Loretta Devine. In an interview with GuideLive, Schneider said Norm is a bit of a departure from what he's used to.
“Well, you can show up in your sweats. That’s what’s good,” he said. “You get fat over the few weeks you’re doing it.”
And with his recent return to stand-up comedy, Schneider said it’s hard to compare the two.
“When I’m doing standup I’m trying to challenge the audience and it may be shocking or piss people off,” he said. “But for a movie like this I just want people to sit back, relax and share something with their children.”
Schneider said he hopes the movie succeeds in that regard as it's been a passion project of his for the past five years.
“I’m invested,” he said. “I’ve gotten more bald since this thing started, but I want to make sure the voice is consistent. I want it to be successful for these guys who have been working on it this long.”
Schneider's longtime friend and collaborator Adam Sandler recently told him that it may be time to shake things up. Schneider is part of the ensemble cast in Sandler's The Ridiculous 6, which was released on Netflix in December.
“[Adam] called me last night and said things are getting good in this movie he’s writing. It’s gonna be more of an emotional character,” he said. "Something without a ridiculous voice or costume."
Mostly Schneider just wants to keep on enjoying life, and he said the next few years are looking bright. His Netflix show, Real Rob, is seeing success and he's hoping for a season two, and his stand-up tour is kicking into overdrive.
“I’d also like to do something else with my wife. She has a drama she’s working on. Something Roberto Benigni would write,” he said. “But right now I’d like to get my stand-up act, this next hour, to be the best one I’ve done.
But for now, Schneider just wants to make sure Norm will bring people together.
“It’s a nice character and there aren’t a lot of films you can go see with your entire family,” he said. “The kids can enjoy and the parents cannot be bored out of their minds. You want to do something that’s entertaining for everybody.”
Norm of the North hits theaters Jan. 15.
