The Biggest Eddie Murphy Movies Of All Time

It's safe to say that during his nearly 40-year career, Eddie Murphy has reinvented himself as a box-office star on multiple occasions. He rose to national fame with his scene-stealing appearances on Saturday Night Live and his breathtaking performance as charismatic thief Reggie Hammond in 48 Hrs. His 1987 concert film Eddie Murphy Raw was a mix of stand-up and sketches about his family. It was the rare comedy concert film that got a wide release, and it was highly successful, making over $50 million overall. It had critics comparing Murphy's edgy sense of humor to his hero, Richard Pryor. 

However, for as many big hits as Murphy has had, he's had his share of career setbacks. The Golden Child was Murphy's follow-up to Beverly Hills Cop in 1986, and this odd fantasy film was considered to be a disappointment. Every time a film like The Distinguished Gentleman or A Vampire In Brooklyn underperformed, he came back with another big sequel or a broad farce like The Nutty Professor. In the 1990s and early 2000s, he left his edgy persona behind as he made a number of popular movies aimed at kids. Fans who remember him as Reggie Hammond or Axel Foley may be surprised to see how many of his most successful films have fallen into that category. Let's take a look at Murphy's biggest hits, which span action films, romantic comedies, voice-over work, and much more. 

Discussing Eddie Murphy's performance in the 2011 Brett Ratner action-comedy Tower Heist, critic Amy Biancolli said, "He doesn't have much screen time in Tower Heist — just enough to steal it." Co-starring with Ben Stiller, Casey Affleck, Alan Alda, and Matthew Broderick, Murphy was widely praised in his first edgy action role since Beverly Hills Cop 3. After nearly 15 years of doing movies for kids or donning heavy make-up for easy laughs, Murphy returned to his roots as the cool, foul-mouthed criminal Slide helping a group of disgruntled employees rob a building. Tower Heist earned nearly $153 million worldwide. 

The film was based on an idea that Murphy himself cooked up in 2005. His initial concept included an all-Black cast robbing Trump Tower as an act of revenge. Early names he had in mind included Chris Rock, Tracy Morgan, Chris Tucker, and Martin Lawrence. Trump Tower was actually used as a shooting location, and Donald Trump was initially pitched as the boss people were trying to get revenge on. The movie went through various permutations until Murphy hopped back on the production five years later. The plot, which revolved around a white-collar grifter who embezzled from others, inadvertently mimicked the real-life Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme scandal that cost people millions of dollars. 

When a film inspires a negative industry term, that is not a great legacy. However, despite the lingering use of "the Norbit effect," that 2007 comedy made nearly $160 million worldwide, despite an aggregate Rotten Tomatoes score of 9% and an audience score of 53%. To say that Murphy went low is an understatement, yet he put an enormous amount of work into the film, playing three different roles. He played the titular, timid Norbit, a sweet man strong-armed into a nightmare marriage. He played his wife, the corpulent and violent Rasputia, wearing a fat suit as a comedic statement in itself, along with the usual jokes about flatulence. He also played Mr. Wong, somewhat controversially playing across race in what was a heartfelt performance. 

Unfortunately for Murphy, Norbit was released smack-dab in the middle of Oscar season, with its previews hurting his chances of winning a Best Supporting Actor prize for Dreamgirls. The "Norbit effect" now refers to any kind of popular or silly film released or previewed when an actor is trying to get serious consideration for an award, and how much that kind of film can stall an Oscar campaign. It's more of a handicapping device than a real phenomenon (plenty of actors have won Oscars despite having had lurking "Norbits"), but its place in film culture has long outlived its more immediate popularity. 

Disney's attempt to launch movie franchises based on their popular Disney World rides had mixed results. Murphy's 2003 film The Haunted Mansion was released not long after the first Pirates Of The Caribbean film, The Curse Of The Black Pearl. While the latter film was a smash hit that launched a franchise, The Haunted Mansion failed to make back its $90 million budget domestically, though it did wind up making over $180 million worldwide. That made it a reasonable success, but nowhere near the more than $650 million that Pirates Of The Caribbean earned. 

Slightly more surprising is its standing on Rotten Tomatoes, where it's at a poorly-reviewed 14%. It's been reexamined by some critics in recent years, however. Jessica Hogan praised its details and faithfulness to the ride in subtle ways, though she did note that Murphy's natural screen presence overwhelmed some of the visuals. Dirk Libbey praised its "subversive" plot and "perfect" blend of comedy and horror. The film was aimed at a younger audience, so it never went overboard with scares, and Murphy restrained a lot of his natural edginess playing a workaholic dad who didn't spend enough time with his family. There have been talks about rebooting the film a number of times, but a new attempt with Ghostbusters writer Katie Dippold on board may actually take this time.

Coming To America featured not only Eddie Murphy at the height of his powers, it also featured him at the height of his influence. He noted that the movie was the first to feature a (nearly) all-Black cast that was a worldwide success. It was indeed a huge hit, earning almost $289 million worldwide. It was also the first major film that showed African kings and queens, nearly thirty years before Black Panther did it. 

Murphy flexed a lot of comedic and acting muscles in the movie. His Prince Akeem was a straight man as a leading man, with a touch of action. He was there to react to much more exaggerated characters, including Arsenio Hall's impatient Semmi, Akeem's right-hand man. Their chemistry is a big part of the film's success, especially in the barber shop scenes featuring them playing multiple characters. Murphy also got to bounce off outstanding actors like John Amos, James Earl Jones, Eriq LaSalle, Samuel L. Jackson, and many others. Most of that cast has returned for the long-awaited sequel, Coming 2 America, along with Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones, and Tracy Morgan. 

Murphy had not done any voice work for animation prior to 1998's Mulan, but there's no question that his little dragon character Mushu was one of its most beloved characters. So much so, that when a live-action version of the film was made in 2020 and Mushu (and Murphy) were nowhere to be found, a lot of fans were unhappy. 

Mushu was the comic relief to the serious Mulan's quest to save her father and China from an invasion of the Huns. He played a disgraced guardian spirit sent to awaken a more powerful one, only to accidentally destroy it. So he became Mulan's guardian, offering sometimes clumsy advice but always with a good heart. While Murphy is a physical performer who draws a lot of humor from his face and body language, his distinctive voice easily carries his sense of humor. He's a classic Disney animal sidekick. Mulan made an astounding $304 million worldwide and established Murphy as one of the funniest men alive to a new generation in a kid-friendly way. 

Murphy's biggest box-office successes didn't even require him to be on screen. As the voice of Donkey, Shrek's sidekick and conscience, Murphy helped boost the Shrek series to astounding worldwide box office triumphs. The first film in 2001 triggered the phenomenon of mixing classic fairy tale tropes and Disney characters with modern-day references on its way to almost $488 million worldwide. Shrek 2 in 2004 was a runaway success at nearly $929 million worldwide. Shrek The Third in 2007 rolled to over $813 worldwide, while Shrek Forever After in 2010 dropped off a bit to around $752 million. Murphy noted that he didn't improvise very much for the role, saying, "I get more direction on something like this than I get when I'm doing something where it's live action." 

Though Mike Myers' Shrek is technically the lead character in the series, critic Stephen Holden wrote in 2010, "It is Mr. Murphy's toothy, shifty-eyed Donkey who distills the series' attitude of cheerfully curdled hipness. In his eternal upbeat cheekiness, he is a creation to rival Peter Pan." It's a testament to the fact that whether a film is good or bad, Murphy always dominates and elevates the material.