Warning: Spoilers ahead for Lisa Frankenstein!

Summary

• Cole Sprouse shines in Lisa Frankenstein as the reanimated Creature, marking his first real horror film role.
• The connection between Newton and Sprouse's characters carries the movie, despite critics' mixed reviews.
• Sprouse unintentionally fulfilled a joke made 25 years earlier by his Big Daddy role, adding a fun twist to his career.

Cole Sprouse stars as "The Creature" in the 2024 horror-comedy Sandler's best movies to date.

In Lisa Frankenstein, Sprouse plays the reanimated corpse who sets his sights on Kathryn Newton's Lisa after she seemingly declares her desire to be with the dead bachelor. Despite Lisa Frankenstein's killer soundtrack and positive fan reception, critics weren't as kind to Zelda Williams' directorial debut for a feature-length movie. Still, the thrilling connection between Newton and Sprouse's characters carry the movie even though the Creature is zombie-like for most of the movie. The title itself is a play on the Lisa Frank-craze of the '80s, but it also serves as a fun callback to Sprouse's past.

Cole Sprouse's Big Daddy "Frankenstein" Character Unintentionally Teased His Lisa Frankenstein Role

The Actor Hilariously Predicted A Role 25 Years Early

Cole Sprouse's first movie role came in 1999 when he and his brother Dylan shared the role of Julian McGrath in Adam Sandler's Big Daddy. When Sandler's Sonny took over as Julian's caregiver, he allowed the 5-year-old to change his name from Julian to anything he desired. Sprouse's Big Daddy character renamed himself "Frankenstein," which ended up foreshadowing his casting 25 years later in Zelda Williams' Frankenstein-inspired horror-comedy. In fact, Sprouse spoke out (via MovieWeb) about the Big Daddy name change, confirming that he had trouble with his Rs, leading to "Fwankenstein" being more accurate.

It took 25 years, but Sprouse accidentally fulfilled a joke innocently made by his Big Daddy role.

While Sprouse's Creature character doesn't play Frankenstein in the 2024 movie, as that role would technically be Lisa, he embodies the role of Frankenstein's Monster. Upon being resurrected by lightning, it's Lisa who continues to bring him back to life by sewing on new body parts and using her step-sister's tanning bed as further electrocution power. By Lisa Frankenstein's ending, the Creature is near-human with the ability to talk while Lisa is recovering from her own death to live in peace with her creation. It took 25 years, but Sprouse accidentally fulfilled a joke innocently made by his Big Daddy role.

Adam Sandler Missed Out On A Great Opportunity To Pay Off Cole Sprouse's Big Daddy Frankenstein Role

Adam Sandler Had A Chance At Circling Back To Cole Sprouse's "Frankenstein" Role

Though the "Frankenstein" name for Julian was likely meant to be a throwaway joke in Big Daddy, it ended up becoming one of the more heartwarming sequences between Sandler's character and the young boy he was taking care of. Interestingly enough, Sandler could have brilliantly paid off Big Daddy's memorable "Frankenstein" name gag years later with his Hotel Transylvania movie franchise. The animated franchise follows Count Dracula, voiced by Sandler in the first three entries, overseeing a hotel for monsters, including Frank, Dracula's best friend, who is based on Frankenstein's Monster.

It would have been perfect for Sprouse to return to his Big Daddy roots by voicing Frank or a character with similar origins in Sandler's monster franchise. Hotel Transylvania: The Series even introduced Frank's son, Hank N Stein, which was another missed opportunity for a fun connection to Sprouse's past. Even without Hotel Transylvania, Lisa Frankenstein is a fun, full-circle moment for Sprouse and his movie career dating back 25 years.

Source: MovieWeb