Throughout his career, Eddie Murphy has had some memorable celebrity run-ins.
In Netflix’s documentary, “Being Eddie,” the actor and comedian, 64, recalled a sexual proposition from Yul Brynner that has stayed with him all these years.
“My 21st birthday party, I had at Studio 54,’” Murphy recalled. “Yul Brynner, ‘Ten Commandments,’ he was with his wife and he was like, ‘How would you like to go back to my apartment with my wife and I and party?’ And I was like, ‘Nah, I’m cool!’ And I realized as I got older, his wife was smiling. Did he want me to go f–k his wife?”
“The story would [have] ended better,” he added. “You know, ‘Yeah, I went back to Yul Brynner’s and f—ed his wife, and he was watching me going, ‘Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera!’”
Brynner died in 1985 after a battle with lung cancer.
Ahead of the documentary’s release, Murphy also sounded off about ‘fake’ Hollywood and explained why he thinks he’s been overlooked by the Oscars.
“That’s one of the reasons why I don’t go to award shows and stuff, the feeling of being in a room full of famous people who all want to win some trophy, that feeling is such a s—ty feeling,” he told USA Today. “Everybody’s dressed and acting and fake … just being in a room full of famous people is just a weird — I don’t like it.”
“ I’ve always liked to stay around the house,” Murphy continued. “The people I know that do stand-up comedy … they do it because they love it. They love it. They get something from getting on that stage and feeling the energy and all, and I’m the exact opposite.”
“My batteries get recharged in a quiet setting when I’m at home, or I’m somewhere where everything can slow down, that’s where I get energized,” he added. “The crowd saps my energy.”
Throughout his career, he’s played every role under the sun — an older woman in “The Nutty Professor,” a donkey in “Shrek,” a veterinarian who talks to animals in “Dr. Dolittle,” a Jewish man in “Coming to America” and so much more. From helping redefine stand-up comedy in modern society to paving the way for Black leading actors in Hollywood, Murphy has devoted his life to show business and the silver screen.
Yet, he’s never won an Oscar.
Murphy, who kickstarted his career as a stand-up comedian when he was 15 years old, got his breakthrough role on “Saturday Night Live” in the 1980s. Over the next few years, he landed leading roles in various films including “Beverly Hills Cop,” “Boomerang,” “Harlem Nights,” “Coming to America” and more.
By the late ‘80s and early ’90s, Murphy had achieved megastar status and was well on his way to becoming one of Hollywood’s all-time greats.
“I wanted to be funny as Richard [Pryor]. I wanted to be cool like Elvis [Presley]. And I wanted to be as big as The Beatles,” he said in the documentary.
Reginald Hudlin, a film producer and director, said Murphy had a mission.
“One of the quiet agendas that Eddie has is, ‘Hey, Black people haven’t had a movie like that. There hadn’t been a Black romantic comedy before. We need to do that so other people can do that, and if I can use my clout to open that door, that’s a good thing.’”
“Because we showed Black life in a way that had never been put on screen before, there were these really extreme reactions,” Hudlin said. “Hollywood back then and to this day. There’s a lot of negative forces. Black movie stars always had to break through all these obstacles, but those obstacles were the default.”
While presenting an award during the 67th annual Academy Awards in 1995, Murphy called out the Academy for not recognizing Black talent.
“When they came to me, and they said they wanted me to present the award for Best Picture, my manager came to me and told me that the Academy had picked me,” Murphy told the crowd. “My first reaction was to say, ‘No, I ain’t going.’ And my manager said, ‘Why?’ And I said, ‘I’m not going because they haven’t recognized Black people in motion pictures.’ And he said, ‘What are you talking about? Black people win Oscars.’”
“I’ll probably never win an Oscar for saying this, but hey, what the hey,” he said. “Actually I might not get in any trouble because the way it’s been going, about every 20 years we’ve been getting one, so we ain’t due until about 2004. By that time, this will all blow over.”
“I just want you to know I’m going to give this award, but Black people will not ride the caboose of society, and we will not bring up the rear anymore. I want you to recognize us.’ They said, ‘Well fine, it’s done.’ I said, ‘When do I have to be there?’ He said, ‘Well, you don’t have to get there until about nine or 10. It’s the last award of the evening.’”
Murphy later suggested his remarks may be the reason he’s never been awarded an Oscar.
“The next day, it was like I didn’t say anything,” Murphy recalled in the documentary. “There were no pictures of me at the Oscars. There was no coverage of me. There was no mention that I said that. It was like I wasn’t at the Oscars and I haven’t gotten an Oscar. I haven’t gotten an Oscar, man. I’ve done everything. I’ve played everything.”
“I’ve done everything, and I’ve never gotten an Oscar, but I don’t think it’s because of that,” Murphy added with a smirk.
“I think I’m in a transitional period as a comedian,” he said in the documentary. “I feel like there are other things that I want to do, and I don’t want to do things that I’ve done before, and I want to do different types of movies and exploring where I am in this part of my life because so much has happened to me in the last couple of years between marriage and kids and personal life.”
Murphy is a father to ten children from various relationships. He and his wife, Paige Butcher, married in 2024 and share two children together.
“My kids are the center of everything,” he said. “Before kids, it’s just about you, and once you have kids, it’s all about that.”
