EddieMurphy Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Back in December when new Batman rumors were swirling faster than the wind between buildings in Gotham City, the Brits from across the pond were having a blast chucking out one false casting rumor after the next. The truth at the time (and it still is to a degree) was that Christopher Nolan hadn't even started work on a script for the next Batman movie, and casting the thing was still a ways out.

One rumor that popped up had to do with Eddie Murphy becoming The Riddler in the new film. We all knew it was bullsh*t at the time, but it was finally confirmed by the man himself, Eddie Murphy, during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien last night. The clip isn't online yet (I'm sure it'll hit Hulu in the next day or so), but Conan actually brought up the Riddler rumor to Eddie and the actor laughed it off as such after acknowledging that he heard it too and thought it was hilarious. After that, though, he did say that he'd actually like to star in (and I'm paraphrasing) "one of those Batman type films," which means we could see Murphy donning a tight superhero suit one day soon. Will he be The Riddler? Probably not. But I wouldn't be surprised if Eddie gets in on this superhero craze in some way, shape or form in the near future.

Update: Thanks to commenter John for reminding me that Murphy said he'd love to play Egghead instead of Riddler, and proceeded to do the Egghead voice as Vincent Price. Funny stuff.

Update 2: Video of this interview is now available at NBC's site. And I'm not reminded that they also discussed James Brown, and Eddie said he'd love to see Wesley Snipes take on the role.

And don't forget to vote for your favorite all-time Eddie Murphy character over at Moviefone.

This Friday Eddie Murphy hits screens with the film Imagine That, which looks to be another family-friendly outing for the once-controversial actor. Sure, these films seem to do pretty well at the box office, and I'm positive Imagine That has just enough cutesy kid moments to attract a whole bunch of families to theaters this weekend, but what I really want is old Eddie Murphy. I want crazy Eddie Murphy. I want bug-eyed Eddie Murphy. I want the Eddie Murphy who couldn't blurt out two lines of dialogue without cursing seven times.

That's the Eddie Murphy I want back in theaters, and while I hope he brings some of that to the planned Beverly Hills Cop 4, part of me feels like that Eddie is long gone and only available in films from the early 90s or prior (with the exception of the hilarious Bowfinger in 1999). So with all that in mind, I decided to dig up a little old Eddie to go with the new Eddie arriving in theaters this week, and since I just watched Trading Places with some buddies again over the weekend, I had to go with this clip because we all agreed it showed Eddie at his best. (And whoever that guy is who keeps saying "Yeah" -- well, he should've won an award for comedic timing in this scene because that dude just cracks me the hell up.)

Watch the scene after the jump.

Forbes has released its Most Valuable Comedians list, and through some intricate calculations I stopped studying after high school, came up with Adam Sandler as Hollywood's most powerful laugh riot, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

Sandler is gaining traction not only because of his starring roles in such critic-proof movies as You Don't Mess with the Zohan and I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, but because he can also occasionally show off some real acting chops as in 2007's Reign Over Me and Punch-Drunk Love. The number of movies he's producing and has in development under Happy Madison Productions are growing in number. And despite its premise, this summer's Funny People, which stars Sandler as a comedian dying of cancer who mentors a younger comedian, has quite a number of big names attached. Judd Apatow wrote, directed, and produced the film; Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill costar. Oscar-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski is behind the lens. So even though at first glance, I thought, "Adam Sandler, WTF?" it's clear that even though Sandler doesn't tickle my funny bone, he does have all the criteria for Forbes's list firmly in place.

Will Ferrell, who's #2, is getting more and more into production along with writing and acting, and launching FunnyorDie.com with director and writer Adam McKay was a watershed moment for viral video. HBO's investment in the website led to a deal with Ferrell and his FoD cohorts for a TV show - 10 episodes to be exact - which turned out to be the hit Eastbound and Down.

Ever since director Brett Ratner accidentally said something along the lines of making a Beverly Hills Cop 4 the kids can all enjoy, folks everywhere cried bloody murder -- afraid this latest installment in the action-comedy franchise would go PG-13 ... or, gasp, PG! But lately all those involved are dancing to a new, much darker tune, and it would appear the sequel will try its best to imitate the heart, soul and badassery of the original ... that is, according to co-writer Michael Brandt.

In an interview with Cine Fools, Brandt talks about the new Bev Cop 4 and the different drafts they've gone through, as well as how one of his older scripts, Dying Day, was re-tooled to ultimately become Beverly Hills Cop 4. On that original script, Brandt notes, "It was kind of a buddy cop thing set in LA with buddy FBI agents- but it wasn't jokey at all, it was pretty hardcore. Everybody died in the end and it was the kind of movie/script that everybody who read it really liked but nobody was ever going to make.. Too dark. And [Paramount] said they would like to turn Dying Day into Beverly Hills Cop 4." Everyone dies? Really? Does that mean Axel Foley may finally meet his demise?

Brandt does say that since then they've "gotten farther and farther away from our original script," and these days I can't see a studio killing off a franchise character just in case Eddie Murphy can still play Axel when he's 90. So don't freak out yet. Good news is the sequel will play it rough and dirty, and so long as Ratner doesn't completely muck it up, this is one R-rated cop flick I'm really looking forward to. You?

Uh, my name is Johnny Wish-Wishbone. Johnny Wishbone. And I am a psychic from the island of St. Croix. Yes, I am psychic from the island of St. Croix .. and you can follow me on Twitter.

[via Moviehole]

A few different sources (EW, Hitfix) have confirmed that Eddie Murphy will play legendary comedian Richard Pryor in a new drama called Richard Pryor: Is It Something I Said? for director Bill Condon, who's reuniting with Murphy following their 2006 hit Dreamgirls. Folks are pegging this as Murphy's return to drama, but I just don't see how serious a film about Richard Pryor could be. Sure, the guy had a long career full of ups and downs and sickness, but do we even want to see a straight-up drama about Richard Pryor? I don't. I kinda want to laugh a little, too. Fox Searchlight nabbed the film once The Weinstein Co. put it into turnaround, and Condon is eying a summer 2010 release.

Personally, I know Murphy used to do a fantastic Richard Pryor impersonation, and I hope the guy still has enough funky left in him to pull this one off right. The script is said to also feature roles for Pryor's four ex-wives, as well as Red Foxx. (Right now I sense Beyonce trying to wiggle her way in there somehow.) Check out a hysterical bit from Raw after the jump, in which Eddie does a little Richard Pryor -- then let us know what you think: Is Murphy the right person for this role?

In his continued quest to pursue proud family-friendly mediocrity, Eddie "Meet Dave" Murphy seems to be starring in a comic fantasy about a workaholic dad (Murphy) who neglects his pweecoshus daughter (Yara Shahidi) until imaginative elements of her creation begin to have an effect on his career. Is it called Bedtime Stories? No. Is it called Liar Liar? Nuh-uh. Is it called The Santa Clause? Nope, it's actually called Imagine That, and I'm afraid it's coming our way without a surprise in store.

Trailer Addict has the first footage from it (embedded below), and while it doesn't look necessarily bad (not Norbit bad, I mean), it does come off as an exceedingly bland effort for Murphy to mug and just act generally goofy at every turn. Normally, I'd insist that most moviegoers are above this (Meet Dave's theatrical gross fell under $12 million last summer), but Kevin James Falls Down, Goes Boom has just raked in $65 million to date, so, in the words of Kate Capshaw, anything goes.

Imagine That -- formerly called Nowhereland, perhaps too apt to describe Murphy's current career trajectory -- opens on June 12th.

Methinks the rumor-mongers are getting lazy -- this has to be one of the most ridiculous bunches of gossip that I've heard in a while, but (as usual) it's too amusing to not share.

The Sun actually claims to have the scoop on the next installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman franchise. Once again, the Riddler's name is coming up, but instead of an intriguing choice like Johnny Depp, they say -- in all their infinite wisdom -- that it's Eddie Murphy. But just to make it even more unbelievable (and obnoxious) -- the report also states that Shia LaBeouf has signed on to play Robin.

I'd be utterly shocked if Nolan chose Murphy to be the Riddler; however, I'd be certain that Nolan had lost his mind if he decided to reinvent Batman Forever. That's just not his style, and why folks like Spielberg might love Shia, I think we can all agree that he would be an awkward choice for Robin -- if Nolan even considered the possibility. The Dark Knight made phenomenal progress with the world of superheroes when Heath Ledger provided the feature with such a layered performance, so we need someone with solid, intriguing, and dynamic talents. Any suggestions to give The Sun better material to run with? Oh, and in case you need us to spell it out for ya: This one ain't true.

Note: In cooler Batman news, though, Mark "Luke Skywalker" Hamill will voice The Joker in the new video game Batman: Arkham Asylum, while Kevin Conroy will voice Batman. Both have voiced the characters before; Hamill in animated Batman and Justice League programs and Conroy, well, for anything that wasn't a live-action movie.

I guess when two out of three films in a franchise are an absolute blast to watch, you kinda try to get behind the odds that a fourth installment will fall somewhere in the middle between awesome and please don't let me see that again ... ever. After watching Beverly Hills Cop 3, I almost filed a police report convinced the filmmakers had committed some sort of crime against humanity. Now, with the next one, you'd think folks would have learned from earlier mistakes. Well, the fact that Brett Ratner is directing hasn't exactly bolstered anticipation -- but maybe the script is good ...

Speaking of, Latino Review managed to snag a draft of Beverly Hills Cop 4 (one they claim "the studio loves, but Eddie Murphy is not too keen on"), and they've slapped a C+ grade on it. Based on their description (which includes spoilers, so watch out), the flick looks to be a combination of the original Beverly Hills Cop and Hitch, with Axel Foley (Murphy) trying to figure out who killed one of his friends, all while helping his new, fat partner score with some girl he has a crush on. LR says it's a "pretty standard police corruption story", and it feels "like the writers took an Arnold Schwarzenegger script they had lying around and changed the details to make it a Beverly Hills Cop movie. There's no fun in it."

Good news is the script will probably change before a final product is shoveled into theaters. What do you think a fourth Beverly Hills Cop movie needs in order to be successful with fans of the series?

I don't know about you, but I've been sitting here, hating the state of cinema -- those dark knights, iron men -- and wishing that we could get more nutty professors. Behold my happiness: The Hollywood Reporter posts that Universal and Imagine Entertainment are tossing around the idea of another sequel to The Nutty Professor.

Apparently, they're in the early stages of development, and have an open call out to writers asking for their take on character. Whether Eddie Murphy would be attached -- that remains to be seen. THR says that his involvement depends on a number of elements including the writer and director. But really -- would he actually refuse it? It's not like we're talking about stellar cinema here.

Perhaps the bigger question is who actually wants to see this? First, there's more Fockers, now more Klumpy nuttiness. The first made $270 million worldwide, a nice chunk of change, and the second took in $162 million. I'd be incredibly surprised if the next possible sequel doesn't have at least the same $108 million drop. But if they kept expenses low, I guess this could still be monetarily worth it.

But can we movie fans bear more goofy Murphy? Could a sequel survive without him? Maybe even thrive?

The poster for How to Lose Friends and Alienate People uses that horrible big red font you're no doubt familiar with -- that ubiquitous "goofy family comedy" lettering suggesting that it features Eddie Murphy in a fat suit and is terrible. God knows why. The movie stars Simon Pegg, not Eddie Murphy, and -- not surprisingly -- looks pretty funny. I actually didn't go nuts over Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, though I liked both a lot; on the other hand, I also enjoyed Run Fatboy Run, which seemed to leave most people cold. Maybe the answer is that I think Pegg is the genius and not (necessarily) Edgar Wright.

Friends, based on Toby Young's memoir about being a British nobody who finds himself among New York's high society, working at a prestigious magazine, is another Wright-less Simon Pegg affair. Most of the laughs in the new trailer, which you can watch at the top of this post (it's considerably longer and better than the British teaser from a while ago), come courtesy of Pegg's unassuming physical comedy; I love that he never forces it or tries too hard, so that the slapstick seems to be a natural part of whatever character he's playing. The little dance he does about 40 seconds in might justify the film's existence all on its own. And I like that the dog gag at the end doesn't go quite where you'd expect.

The movie also stars Kirsten Dunst, Jeff Bridges, Danny Huston, Gillian Anderson, and Megan Fox (probably not naked the whole time). It's supposed to come out October 3rd.