Eddie Murphy Reveals Which Award Caused Him to Quit Acting

Eddie Murphy has starred in some of the most successful and beloved comedies of all time, but after a string of disappointing endeavors in the 2000s, the Razzies bestowed him with the "Worst Actor Ever" award, causing him to step out of the spotlight for multiple years. The actor recently recalled that his intention was only to take a year off from acting, only for that brief sabbatical to continue longer than he had imagined. When Murphy returned to Hollywood, it was starring in Dolemite Is My Name, which earned him critical acclaim. That project also earned him the unexpected Razzie award for being a "redeemer," which highlights performers who had previously earned multiple Razzie nominations and had since become an acclaimed artist.

"I was making sh-tty movies," Murphy shared with the WTF with Marc Marcon podcast. "I was like, 'This sh-t ain't fun. They're giving me Razzies… Motherf-cker gave me the 'worst actor ever' Razzie. [So I thought], 'Maybe it's time to take a break.'"

Murphy earned a total of nine Razzie nominations over his career, winning three for his performances in Norbit, The Adventures of Pluto Nash, and Meet Dave. After that hiatus, Murphy realized that if he were going to end his career, he wanted to go out on a high note.

"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, and I could sit on the couch and not get off it, but I don't want to the last bunch of sh-t they see me do [to be] bullsh-t," Murphy said. "The plan was to go do Dolemite, Saturday Night Live, Coming 2 America, and then do stand-up and see how I felt afterwards. At least then they'll know I'm [still] funny."

The actor's resurgence in recent years has been so strong, he has already confirmed that he's begun working on a third film in the Coming to America series, as well as a fourth entry into the Beverly Hills Cop franchise. One complication with his Coming to America 3, however, is that the idea he has takes place much further into the future.

"There's an idea for a Coming to America 3 that I have, but it doesn't happen for 16 years," Murphy shared with Live! with Kelly and Ryan. "I have to be 75 to do it, and not make me up like 75 but really be 75."

Stay tuned for details on Murphy's upcoming projects.

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