Movies October 24, 2011
Eddie Murphy on Hosting Oscars, 'SNL' and 'Tower Heist'
When funnyman Eddie Murphy sat down with "Extra's" AJ Calloway in NYC, he began with an announcement. "I used to run Manhattan before it went all Hip-Hop. It used to be my town, Jay-Z! Now I've gone Hollywood."
Murphy, 50, will host next year's Academy Awards for the first time, and said he is not planning to include any stand-up (referencing his infamous 1987 stand-up, "Raw," in which he wore a purple leather outfit), telling AJ, "It is not gonna be 'Raw' and if it were, people would be like, 'This is the worst Oscars ever! This is supposed to be about the Oscars... he's up there in that leather suit talkin' all that sh**!'"
The actor vowed he plans to be "a classy, funny host."
The busy star is reportedly planning to return to his old stomping grounds at "Saturday Night Live," and said he would consider bringing back some of his most memorable characters. "It's not like I have all these new characters to unleash on the public," Eddie pointed out. He joked, "Wait till they see my new character, Mr. Willie!"
Murphy stars alongside Ben Stiller in his latest project, "Tower Heist," a comedy about a group of Ponzi scheme victims wanting revenge, who attempt to rob the mastermind's high-rise home.
Stiller spoke about the difficult shooting conditions while they filmed in Manhattan, saying, "The first two months [of production] we were outside and the weather was amazing. Then the second two months was the worst winter on the East Coast in like 150 years."
"Tower Heist" breaks into theaters Nov. 4.
