The sentiment keeps growing that Eddie Murphy may have wrecked his chances at that Best Supporting Actor Oscar by starring in Norbit, which is expected to bomb with critics but be, um, huge at the box office. Or maybe Murphy is just the victim of a smear campaign intended to derail his Academy Award aspirations.
When I interviewed Dreamgirls director Bill Condon in December, he told me that Murphy, who is now 45, was eager to stretch and take on the occasional dramatic role in addition to his usual comedic parts. That contradicts what Hollywood bigshot Jeffrey Katzenberg said in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, but since Murphy no longer talks to the press, I don't know who to believe.
Whatever. The really important Murphy news is that his seminal concert film, Delirious, has finally been released on DVD. Go watch it again and remember why people use the word "genius" to describe this guy.
Norbit or no Norbit, I don't think Murphy deserves the Oscar for Dreamgirls. I mean, he was good, but he wasn't THAT good.
Posted by: Juan | February 10, 2007 at 10:23 AM