Eddie Murphy needs some work, and maybe he’s finally going to get it. There is news today that Paramount is properly working on Beverly Hills Cop 4. It will be the next film in the franchise that Eddie Murphy made so popular back in the 80s and follows the announcement that the Beverly Hills Cop TV pilot was not picked up.
That’s right. Beverly Hills Cop 4 is coming, and Eddie Murphy will be reprising his role as Axel Foley, the smart-mouthed Detroit cop in Beverly Hills who made us laugh for the three other instalments, beginning in 1984. That’s before most of us on this site were born. Man.
Beverly Hills Cop 4 (that’s not yet the official title, but I think we can assume they won’t depart from a tried and true formula on this one) is being written by Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec. They’re the guys behind Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot. We don’t know what the plot will look like yet, but we can assume that Axel will likely have to work with a younger cop. Then again, Murphy is only 50. Bruce Willis didn’t need a young, hip counterpart until the last Die Hard (no, I do not count Justin Long in Live Free Or Die Hard).
While I’m pretty sick of the current crop of reboots/revamps/sequels, I have to say that this is the most interesting project Eddie Murphy has had on the dock for years. It’s tough to see a guy that was a very talented comedian going the way of A Thousand Words and whatever other wretched excuses for comedies he’s been making recently. Maybe a return to his glory days will bring old Eddie back to the comedic top.
No word yet on a director for Beverly Hills Cop 4 but Brett Ratner mentioned that he would like to work with Murphy on other projects following Tower Heist. He could be a good choice for this kind of actioner.
What do you think about Beverly Hills Cop 4? Brilliant idea, or plumbing the depths?