Eddie Murphy has long been known primarily for family-friendly comedies, but that’s not how he started his career. Murphy was as raw as he was a razor-sharp comedian, and one of the biggest stars of the 80s. The most popular and iconic of his many roles is probably the witty and street-smart civilian policeman Axel Foley in Beverly Hills Cop (Snuten i Hollywood, as it was called in Sweden even though Hollywood is definitely not part of the films).
The first two reels (from 1984 and 1987) are considered classics and were produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, while the third (from 1994) ranks as the weakest, in which Bruckheimer was not involved. For 20 years there have been rumors claiming that a fourth film would be made, but so far nothing has materialized until a few years ago it was confirmed that Netflix would be making the film.
So what made Eddie Murphy change his mind this time? Well, it turns out Jerry Bruckheimer’s involvement had a lot to do with it:
“Jerry Bruckheimer, the original producer. When he got involved, and he started developing the script, and he knew what Beverly Hills Cop was supposed to be. When he got back involved, that’s when it all started to come together. Because we tried for years and years, maybe 10, 12 years, and I must have read five or six different scripts, and it was never right. The studio was like, ‘Let’s go. Here it is.’ It was like, ‘It’s just not it.’ Jerry Bruckheimer got back in there, and he knows his s–t, and he put it together. He did [Top Gun: Maverick] just last year, and Bad Boys is Jerry Bruckheimer. So we have that same brain behind Beverly Hills Cop, and he put all the pieces in place that were required for us to make a great movie. And I’m excited for people to see it.”
In addition to Murphy, both Judge Reinhold and John Ashton are confirmed to return as Officer Billy Rosewood and Sergeant John Taggart, so all the main components are in place, which bodes well. Are you looking forward to Axel Foley’s return later this year?
Thanks Collider
