Shaquille O'Neal chooses Kyrie Irving's 'Uncle Drew' as favorite film, following notorious Kazaam flop
The list of NBA players who have stepped into the world of Hollywood is rather short. And it's even shorter if you start filtering by the success of said movie. For every smash hit or cult classic like 'He Got Game' with Ray Allen, there is a shocker such as 'Kazaam' with Shaquille O'Neal.
However, it would appear that O'Neal is still a fan of his starring role in Kazaam, despite its struggles at the box office. In a recent Instagram Reel, the former Los Angeles Lakers superstar noted how Kyrie Irving's 'Uncle Drew' is one of his favorite movies since Kazaam hit cinemas in 1996.
Kazaam's struggles were real. The movie where O'Neal comprises a genie has a 3.1 rating on IMDB and is rarely discussed among fans. However, Irving's role as Uncle Drew was far more successful. What started as some elaborate advertisements for Pepsi quickly gained steam and ended up becoming a full feature-length movie.
Shaquille O'Neal also made his return to acting in 'Uncle Drew,' playing a sizeable role as 'the big man' on Irving's aging team.
Shaquille O'Neal was 14 when he hit seven feet
One of the main reasons Shaquille O'Neal became such a dominant force in the NBA was his hulking size. At seven-foot-one and 325lbs, O'Neal was a monster on the basketball court. It's what made his role as a genie so hilarious.
However, unlike some big men in the NBA, O'Neal's growth spurt didn't happen toward the end of his teenage years. Instead, he was hitting seven feet by the time he was 14. In a recent episode of the 'PBD Podcast,' O'Neal discussed his rapid growth.
"I became a seven-footer at 14," O'Neal said. "Sophomore year in high school. Crazy. Sophomore year in high school. Still didn't make the team. Had size 18 shoes, had Monday, Wednesday, and Friday jeans, had different shirts. Got bullied a lot. Then I had to get tough, and I turned into a bully, and I started playing basketball."
O'Neal also noted that following his growth spurt, his father began to push him to improve at basketball.
"And my father just kept pushing me, pushing me, pushing me. And then this was around 1983, 1984 when the no pass, no play rule came out. So I tried to test my father's theory. One time it didn't pass, and he wouldn't let me play. That devastated me. So I really started focusing on academics then," he added.
Shaquille O'Neal went on to win four NBA championships and be named a 15-time All-Star, making him one of the most successful big men in the history of the NBA. Unfortunately, that on-court talent failed to translate onto the big screen for Kazaam, but O'Neal did redeem himself with his role in 'Uncle Drew.'