In 2019, Netflix acquired the rights to make a Beverly Hills Cop sequel. Eddie Murphy, who starred as Axel Foley in the initial trilogy, stated that the project is still in development and in need of a good script.
Martin Brest’s Beverly Hills Cop was released in 1984 and saw Murphy’s Foley travel from Detroit to California to investigate the murder of his childhood friend. The cast included Judge Reinhold as Detective Billy Rosewood, John Ashton as Sergeant John Taggart, and Lisa Eilbacher as Jenny Summers. The film earned rave reviews from critics and audiences, earning $234 million and becoming the highest-grossing film in 1984 in the U.S. It also received an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay and Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy at the Golden Globes.
Due to the film’s success, Paramount also made two Beverly Hills Cop sequels in 1989 and 1994, both of which followed Foley and Rosewood's attempts to solve crimes in Beverly Hills. The third film underperformed at the box office and was poorly received by critics. In 2011, a spin-off series was in the works at CBS, with the pilot being written by Shawn Ryan and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. Brandon T. Jackson was cast as Axel Foley's son and Murphy agreed to make recurring guest appearances. The one-hour drama never aired as CBS ended up passing on the pilot.
In 2016, the directing duo of Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Bad Boys for Life), who recently joined the MCU as directors of the Ms. Marvel series, was tapped to make Beverly Hills Cop 4. Murphy was also attached to produce and star in the upcoming film. The filmmakers confirmed last summer that a new screenwriter was working on the first draft.
During a recent appearance on Showtime’s DESUS & MERO, Murphy provided an update on the Beverly Hills Cop sequel. The movie star stated he would only sign on to the film if the material were good. “They’ve been trying to make another Beverly Hills Cop for 15 years now,” said Murphy. “Right now, Netflix has it, and they’re trying to develop a script. That’s what we’re supposed to be doing next. But I’m not doing nothing until the script is right.”
Murphy was last seen in Amazon’s Coming 2 America in the role of Prince Akeem. The comedy was directed by Craig Brewer and was the long-awaited sequel to 1988’s Coming to America, which followed Akeem on his trip to New York as he searched for his true love in hopes of evading an arranged marriage. The sequel's cast includes Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones, and Tracy Morgan. Amazon acquired the distribution rights for $125 million and claimed that the sequel had the greatest opening weekend of any streaming movie since March 2020.
Coming 2 America is now streaming on Amazon Prime.
Source: Showtime|YouTube