The one actor Eddie Murphy hated being compared to: “Jesus, I hope not”
When Eddie Murphy first exploded onto the scene in the early 1980s and wasted no time in becoming one of the biggest and most bankable movie stars of the decade, there was nobody else like him.
The actor and comedian’s charisma was entirely unique, with his motormouth stylings and innate screen presence ensuring that he outgrew Saturday Night Live long before he exited as a cast member. It was clear from his first movie, and things kept getting better from there.
Golden Globe-nominated for three of his first four features, it wouldn’t be fair to call him an overnight sensation when he’d paid his dues on the stand-up and SNL circuits, but few stars in modern history have taken off as rapidly as Murphy did. Paramount benefitted the most, with the force of nature elevated into the studio’s marquee star.
In the space of seven years between 1982 and 1989, Murphy headlined eight pictures for Paramount, which combined to earn well over a billion dollars at the box office. He might have hated the results when he went outside of his comfort zone to write, executive produce, and direct the period piece Harlem Nights, but it didn’t stop him from doing it again.
In an attempt to add new layers to his onscreen persona, Murphy evolved into more of a conventional romantic lead for 1992’s Boomerang. Toning down his signature shtick, the star’s advertising executive ends up in the middle of a love triangle involving Robin Givens and Halle Berry. It wasn’t quite ‘Golden Age’ material, but neither was it too far off.
Co-star Geoffrey Holder certainly thought so, comparing Murphy to one of the era’s most iconic names. “I think of Cary Grant,” he told GQ of Murphy’s performance. “I think of the Cary Grant in Bringing Up Baby and Arsenic and Old Lace.” He wasn’t the only one, with producer Warrington Hudlin confident that “after this movie, people are going to see Eddie Murphy as Cary Grant.”
It was a lofty comparison, even if it wasn’t one that filled the star with a huge amount of confidence. “They said that? Jesus, I hope not,” came the incredulous reply. “Cary Grant did the Cary Grant thing already. I’m new shit. Don’t colour me Cary. Not to piss on Cary, but this is a new shade of Eddie.”
This being an Eddie Murphy movie released within a decade of his arrival on the scene, Boomerang was a significant hit at the box office, reinforcing his credentials as the jewel in Paramount’s crown. It showed that he was capable of toning himself down to play it relatively straight in a rom-com, even if the last thing he wanted to do was have Grant mentioned in the same breath.
