Eddie Murphy Calling it Quits (Sort of)
In the “wow, I didn’t see that coming, though maybe I should have” department, we get word today that Eddie Murphy has made his last film and now plans to retire from Hollywood and go back to the stage and continue his career as a standup comedian.
“I have close to 50 movies and it’s like, why am I in the movies?” he said, “I’ve done that part now. I’ll go back to the stage.”
Murphy who is now 47 said that there is indeed a Beverly Hills Cop 4 picture in the works, but he has opted out of it because it “wasn’t ready to be done.”
I found my jaw dropping this morning when I read that Eddie was retiring from film because after films like Pluto Nash, Norbit, and Daddy Day Care, I figured that he obviously didn’t care if his films sucked.
But then again, after Pluto Nash, Norbit, and Daddy Day Care, it’s pretty hard to deny that your films suck and maybe you should go back to doing what made you popular. Maybe after a couple trips back around the comedy circuit, he’ll be fresh enough again to get back into the motion picture business - but let’s not count on that.
I really think this is a great decision by Eddie, and an opportunity to regain his popularity and to return to the headlines, instead of the punch lines.