In the middle of his easygoing hang of a new special, “100% Fresh,” Adam Sandler, one of the biggest movie stars in the world, walks into a Times Square subway station and, disguised in a hoodie and sunglasses, tries his hand at busking.

At a microphone, he starts singing about how his grandmother just died. A few commuters stop to listen. He leans into the song, asking with conviction how he will tell his kids before dancing his way to the punch line: “I guess I’ll go to a bingo game and steal somebody else’s grandma, and hope that my dumb kids can’t tell the difference.”

The camera focuses on a few people who are distinctly unimpressed. No one puts a coin in the empty guitar case. Sandler holds back a chuckle.

How in the world did Adam Sandler become one of the most famous comedians alive? This scene, where, stripped of his celebrity, he bombs in front of strangers, both asks and answers the question, since he comes off as deeply ordinary but also more than willing to present himself as such. Many comics would not have included it, but there’s always been a vulnerability to Sandler’s frustrated Everyman charisma. As this eternally boyish comic has moved into his 50s, this aspect of his appeal has come to the fore.