Kevin James 'Panicked' When He Saw the First Cut of “Paul Blart: Mall Cop”: 'I Thought My Career Was Over'
- - Kevin James 'Panicked' When He Saw the First Cut of “Paul Blart: Mall Cop”: 'I Thought My Career Was Over'
Virginia ChamleeFebruary 4, 2026 at 6:00 PM
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Kevin James now (right) and in Paul Blart
Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty; Moviestore/Shutterstock
Kevin James says he thought his 2009 film, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, was "horrendous" the first time he saw it
Speaking on The Drew Barrymore Show, the actor said the first cut of the film wasn't the best
Fortunately, he added, his good friend Adam Sandler stepped in to make some changes
Kevin James says he thought his career "was over" after his first time seeing his 2009 film, Paul Blart: Mall Cop.
The film tells the story of Paul Blart (played by James), a bumbling mall security guard who finds himself in the middle of a heist.
Speaking to Drew Barrymore on the Tuesday, Feb. 3 episode of The Drew Barrymore Show, James, 60, said he first thought the movie was "horrendous" — until his good friend Adam Sandler made some changes.
Barrymore, 50, noted her own longtime professional relationship with Sandler (with whom she starred in The Wedding Singer, 50 First Dates, and Blended), saying, "he's a great collaborator."
James, in response, concurred, saying, "Everything he does, I listen, I mean I just follow him."
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Paul Blart: Mall Cop (Mall Cop), Kevin James
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It was Sandler, James said, who played a crucial role in the film — both as producer through his company, Happy Madison Productions, and in helping save the film during development.
"And he saved — he made my movie Mall Cop," James said. "I would never have gotten that made, he made it."
But his first time seeing the film, he added, was a little scary.
"And by the way, we shot it and we edited it, and I don't know, you know what it's like seeing a first cut of a movie — it's horrendous," James said. "Like, I thought ....my career was over and we were so panicked."
He continued: "Adam goes, 'Relax, buddy, let me check it out.' He looked at it. He let areas breathe, and he just knew what to do with it, and he made the movie that it was, and it came in like, you know, it was just amazing, incredible."
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The movie went on to be a box office success, grossing more than $183 million worldwide against a $26 million. A sequel — Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 — was released in 2015.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
