Who voices Mr. Beefy in Little Nicky? The 2000 Happy Madison film stars Adam Sandler as Satan's son who travels to Earth for a special mission. In New York City, Little Nicky meets a street-smart bulldog who is voiced by Sandler's long-time collaborator Robert Smigel, who is also the voice of a famous TV canine.
Mr. Beefy plays a significant role in Little Nicky. He first appears when Nicky arrives in New York, hoping to find his two brothers, Adrian (Rhys Ifans) and Cassius (Tiny Lister Jr.), who plan to create a new Hell on Earth. Mr. Beefy describes himself as an old friend of Satan's (Harvey Keitel), and educates Sandler's character about how life works in the Big Apple. Mr. Beefy urges him to embrace his evil powers as the son of the Devil, all while the bulldog enjoys some quality rest and relaxation time by smoking large amounts of marijuana. Mr. Beefy always thinks ahead, evidenced by a moment when he escapes police officers during a pee break ("That dog's got smoke balls!").
Mr. Beefy speaks with a distinct accent in Little Nicky, and takes a no-nonsense approach when dealing with Sandler's character, who is slightly naïve upon arriving on Earth. As Mr. Beefy, Smigel uses a vocal tone that's similar to his famous creation Triumph the Insult Dog, a puppet character who first appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien during the late 1990s. At the time, Smigel was best known as a writer for Saturday Night Live.
Since 1985, Smigel has contributed to over 400 Saturday Night Live episodes. During the '90s, he appeared as Carl Wollarski in the recurring sketch "Bill Swerski's Superfans" featuring Mike Myers and Chris Farley. Smigel also co-created the sketch "The Ambiguously Gay Duo" and voiced the character Bighead. In 1993, he made his big screen debut in Wayne's World, and later appeared in the Sandler films Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, and The Wedding Singer. In recent years, Smigel wrote and directed the Happy Madison Netflix movie The Week Of, and also has small roles in both Marriage Story and The King of Staten Island.
With Mr. Beefy in Little Nicky, Smigel takes a less aggressive approach than he does with Triumph the Insult Dog. The bulldog does indeed have plenty of personality, but he's mostly casual in conversation and waits for the opportune moments to inspire Little Nicky with some tough love. Whereas Smigel utilizes observational humor for Triumph the Insult Dog, his most comedic Mr. Beefy moments in Little Nicky are situation-oriented, with the bulldog's behavior serving as the punchline while conversing with Sandler.