Adam Sandler Mistook Nikki Glaser for Judd Apatow's Daughter During Babysitting Gig

Nikki Glaser, the rising comedian and host of the Golden Globes, reminisced about a humorous mix-up involving Adam Sandler during her days babysitting for Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann’s children, Maude and Iris Apatow.

While chatting on SiriusXM's The Howard Stern Show, Nikki recalled the time the Billy Madison star dialed the Apatow residence and mistakenly thought her voice belonged to Maude. "I remember one night, Adam Sandler called, and he was like, 'Hellooo?'" she shared, skillfully mimicking the actor's iconic goofy voice. "He thought I was Maude, 'cause their younger daughter had a kind of a huskier voice. 'Hello, Maude, this is Adam.' And I was like, 'Oh, hi!' And he was like, 'Oh, sorry, you're the babysitter! Adam Sandler. How's your night going?'"

Nikki expressed her surprise at Adam’s genuine interest during the call. “He asked me how my night was going,” she explained. “It was my first interaction with Adam Sandler, and I have loved him ever since. That was the nicest call I've ever gotten from someone when I was babysitting, from like a family member or a friend calling.”

Over the years, Nikki’s admiration for Adam grew, especially witnessing his playful rapport with the Apatow kids. “It was so cute how he was so silly on the phone, and asked me how my night was,” she reflected. “And then I loved him ever since.”

Fast forward to the 2026 Golden Globes, where Nikki had the chance to reconnect with Adam. "He was at the Globes the other night, and I had to do something in the middle of the audience, and he's sitting right in front of me," she recalled. "He was turned around, watching, beaming at me, smiling, just rooting me on. I flubbed every line in that because I was so nervous performing for Adam Sandler, who was sitting front row. I love him so much. He was so supportive."

During the same awards ceremony, Judd reminisced about Nikki’s time as their babysitter while presenting the Golden Globe for Best Director. “She was our babysitter, and she was like, 'I do stand-up comedy,'” he recalled, adding that he found her early material quite eye-opening. "And then I went online and watched her set, and it was all about smoking reefer and having weird s--. And then she stopped being our babysitter."

“I really appreciated that he shared that,” Nikki told Howard, delighting in the recognition of her roots. “It's such a special moment for me that I started out as his babysitter.”

Now, Nikki and Judd are collaborating on a movie project, with her history as a babysitter never overshadowing his belief in her talent. “When I took that job, I remember thinking, ‘This person is probably never going to see you as anything other than a nanny or whatever you came in as,’” she reflected. “Even good people, they can't really get past that. Whatever they meet you as is kind of what you are [to them] forever. And it's never been that with him. He doesn't talk about that. We don't talk about it. It's not like a thing we don’t talk about, but I don't feel like he looks at me that way.”