Forty years after creating the character that would change his life, Eddie Murphy returns to the role of Axel Foley in Beverly Hills Cop IV: Axel Foley. He sits down with Extra’s Melvin Roberts to reflect on the character.
He considers Axel his most important role, saying, “Before ‘Beverly Hills Cop,’ there had never been a film starring a black man or a black person that was successful around the world. Even now, when black people make films, they almost always work in the United States and not abroad.”
Eddie continued, “Beverly Hills Cop started all over the world. [Smith] And The Rock. They still do it, but ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ was the first one to do it.”
Melvin asked what he knows now about fame that he may not have known before.
He said: “When I was 13, 14 years old, I started saying I was going to be famous. So I knew I was going to be famous and it was like magic. I still believed in magic. But as you get older, you’re like, ‘Dude, there’s no magic.’
Looking ahead to the future, Eddie responded to rumors of a “Beverly Hills Cop 5.”
He said, “Yes, they are developing it. [it]They are writing the script.”
Murphy said he doesn’t know what the storyline will be yet, saying, “Yeah… I’m still waiting for the script.”
He also revealed that he’s developing a new version of the ’60s song “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World” with himself, Martin Lawrence and a number of top comedians.
“I’ve developed a new version,” he said, “and if the script works, it will see me and Martin and all the other people who have been funny over the last 30 years. I want to use an all-comedian cast and do something really special and unique.”
He continued, “What was special about Mad Mad Mad World was that it had a Hollywood star-studded lineup, something you could never do now. It would cost a huge amount of money, but you could do it with just comedians, and you’d get a bunch of A-list comedians. Martin would definitely be in it.”
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F will be available on Netflix on July 3rd.