Comedian Adam Sandler stars as a top Israeli agent who longs for a career styling hair in “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan,” his new movie debuting in theaters on Friday. The actor said the inspiration from “Zohan” dates back to his childhood when he heard stories regarding how tough the Israeli army was.

“Anytime anyone comes after them, they take care of business,” Sandler told reporters at a news conference, quoted by Reuters. “As a Jewish kid, you were proud of that. So I admired them,” he added.

The comedy-movie features a large cast that includes John Turturro and Chris Rock, and has cameos by the likes of Mariah Carey and John McEnroe. “Zohan” was co-written by Sandler, writer/director Judd Apatow and “Saturday Night Live’s” Robert Smigel.

At the film’s Los Angeles press conference, Sandler, Dugan, Rob Schneider, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Ido Mosseri, and writer Robert Smigel talked about finding the funny in the Israel/Palestine conflict and the origin of “Zohan.”

Sandler’s “I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry” from last year earned $120 million at U.S. box offices. However, it managed to score only a 37 out of 100 on review Web site metacritic.com, the same source reports.

Even though Sandler is best known for his comedic roles, such as in the films “Billy Madison” (1995), “Happy Gilmore” (1996), and “Big Daddy” (1999), he also had success in romantic and dramatic roles, such as in the films “Punch-Drunk Love” (2002), “Spanglish” (2004), and “Reign Over Me” (2007).