Did Eddie Murphy take a break from acting because of the humiliating Razzie Awards?
As one of Hollywood’s most promising comedy actors, Eddie Murphy soared to global recognition throughout the 1980s. His iconic roles in movies like 48 Hrs, Trading Places, and Beverly Hills Cop secured his lofty status before age 25. Entering the 1990s, Murphy maintained his position with appearances that rarely deviated from comedy and children’s movies, with the likes of The Nutty Professor and Doctor Doolittle highlighting this era.
At the turn of the century, Murphy again raised his status with a career-defining run as the loveable, if a little unhinged, Donkey in the blockbusting Shrek franchise opposite fellow comedy legend Mike Myers. Though the four Shrek movies were all commercially successful, their critical appeal dropped after the second movie premiered in 2004.
In 2007, the same year Shrek the Third arrived in theatres, Murphy released Norbit, a movie he co-wrote, produced and ubiquitously starred in as a series of characters. The movie yielded a successful $159million worldwide at the box office against a budget of $60million but was an unmitigated disaster in the critical sphere.
Comedies and family movies aren’t often known for harvesting Academy Award nominations in floods. Still, when your movie receives eight nominations for the Golden Raspberry Awards (or Razzies as they’re more commonly known), the eye-rolling must be palpable. From this point onwards, Murphy’s career seemed to take a nose-dive until he eventually decided to take an indefinite career hiatus through much of the 2010s. Speaking to Marc Maron on his WTF podcast in 2021, Murphy discussed his decline and cited his Razzies as a pivotal nail in the coffin.
It seemed Murphy could just about stomach ‘Worst Actor of the Year’ wins for his various roles in 2002, 2007 and 2008, but when he won ‘Worst Actor of the Decade’ in 2010, it finally permeated. “I was making shitty movies. I was like, ‘this shit ain’t fun. They’re giving me Razzies.’ Motherfuckers gave me the ‘worst actor ever’ Razzie. So I thought, ‘maybe it’s time to take a break’.”
“I was only gonna take a break for a year, then all of a sudden, six years go by, and I’m sitting on the couch,” Murphy continued. “And I could sit on the couch and not get off it, but I don’t want the last bunch of shit they [the audience and fans] see me do to be bullshit.”
Thankfully, Murphy made a triumphant comeback with the 2019 movie Dolemite Is My Name. The classy comedy was critically favoured and, crucially, earned Murphy a nomination for ‘Best Actor’ at the Golden Globe Awards and the Razzie Redeemer Award.
Since his return to the big screen, Murphy has begun cashing in on his ’80s success with 2021’s Coming 2 America and the upcoming Beverly Hills Cop 4.
Watch the trailer for Coming 2 America below.
