Eddie Murphy’s 10 Best Movie Roles, Ranked (So Far!)

​​7: Jimmy “Thunder” Early in Dreamgirls (2006)

The premise: Murphy earned his sole Oscar nomination (so far) for this Motown musical, which charts the rise of a Detroit girl group called the Dreams and the parallel fall of the Chitlin’ Circuit R&B singer for whom they used to sing backup, Jimmy “Thunder” Early. Channeling greats such as Jackie Wilson and James Brown, Murphy brings real pathos to the role of a self-destructive artist who refuses to change his sound with the times and falls into a cycle of addiction and adultery. The role required Murphy to tap into sides of himself that he’d never shared on screen, and he more than rose to the challenge.

The best part: To get a taste for Jimmy in all his James Brown glory, you can’t beat the song “Fake Your Way to the Top,” which sees Murphy holding his own opposite Beyoncé, Anika Noni Rose and eventual Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson. 

Watch it: Dreamgirls on Apple TV, Prime Video

​6: Rudy Ray Moore in Dolemite Is My Name (2019)

The premise: Murphy made it decades into his career before tackling his first biopic, and he went with a subject who might not be a household name to most. Rudy Ray Moore was a comedian and “godfather of rap,” whose audacious pimp character Dolemite led a series of kung-fu-themed blaxploitation flicks in the 1970s. Moore was a hustler and a tall-tale teller, and Murphy approaches the role with a mix of mischief and real emotion. He earned some of the most rapturous reviews of his career — and a Golden Globe nod for best actor.

The best part: The early scenes in which Moore develops his Dolemite character feel like we’re getting a peek into the mind of a comedic genius at work.

Watch it: Dolemite Is My Name on Netflix

​5: Donkey in Shrek (2001)

The premise: Just how good is Murphy as the titular ogre’s equine sidekick in this fractured animated fairy tale? It’s the only voiceover performance to be nominated for a BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Award. Murphy has undeniable chemistry with fellow SNL alum Mike Myers, 59, and he walks a tightrope with the character, making him at once lovable and a bit of a pain in the … well, you know what kind of animal he is. You can see why Shrek eventually accepts the chatterbox as his new best friend.

The best part: It’s impossible not to cheer for the sidekick’s hero moment when he sweeps into Princess Fiona’s wedding to save the day — with a little backup from his dragon girlfriend.

Watch it: Shrek on Apple TV, Peacock, Prime Video

​​4: Professor Sherman Klump/Buddy Love in The Nutty Professor (1996)

The premise: In this zany remake of the 1963 Jerry Lewis classic, an overweight professor named Sherman Klump develops an experimental weight-loss drug that turns him into a svelte-but-evil alter ego named Buddy Love, and the two battle for control of his body. Murphy plays Klump and Love … and also Sherman’s father, mother, grandmother and brother and a parody of Richard Simmons named Lance Perkins. If there were an Oscar given for most acting in a motion picture, the trophy would have been Murphy’s.

The best part: It may be a bit sophomoric, but the gathering around the family dinner table is a thing of escalating comic beauty, the spiritual successor to the Blazing Saddles campfire scene.

Watch it: The Nutty Professor on Apple TV, Netflix, Prime Video

3: Billy Ray Valentine in Trading Places (1983)

The premise: This uproarious social satire in the vein of 1930s screwball comedies poses the age-old question: Is it nature or nurture that allows some of us to succeed? Murphy plays street hustler Billy Ray Valentine, and Dan Aykroyd, 70, is commodities broker Louis Winthorpe III, and they’re thrown into a prince-and-the-pauper experiment when billionaire brothers Mortimer (Don Ameche) and Randolph Duke (Ralph Bellamy) frame Winthorpe for a crime he didn’t commit and install Valentine in his position. Murphy is clearly having a blast as he steps into his new role as a capitalist bigwig, and the film really kicks into high gear when the two experimentees team up to take down the Dukes.

The best part: Some scenes haven’t aged particularly well over the past 40 years, but Murphy’s jailhouse storytelling has the same zippy energy as his best stand-up.

Watch it: Trading Places on Apple TV, Pluto, Prime Video

​​2: Axel Foley in Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

The premise: In terms of sheer laughs per minute, it’s hard to top this action-comedy, which sees Murphy as a streetwise Detroit detective who heads to the West Coast to track down the criminal who murdered his childhood friend. Murphy comes armed with his trademark laugh (“heh-heh-heh-heh”), a host of one-liners and a catchy electronic theme song from Harold Faltermeyer. It was the highest-grossing film released in 1984, and the comedian returned for two sequels, with a fourth installment currently in production for Netflix. And to think that Sylvester Stallone and Mickey Rourke almost landed the role! 

The best part: We already knew Murphy was funny, but the various shootouts and car chases proved he could work just as well as a bankable action hero.

Watchit: Beverly Hills Cop on Apple TV, Paramount+, Prime Video

​1: Prince Akeem Joffer in Coming to America (1988)

The premise: In his second pairing with Trading Places director John Landis, 72, Murphy created perhaps the most iconic role of his career, Crown Prince Akeem Joffer of the fictional African nation of Zamunda. With his best friend Semmi (Arsenio Hall, 66), Akeem heads to the United States disguised as a poor student in order to find a wife who loves him for his personality and not his royal status. Murphy shows off every skill in his bag of tricks, even disappearing into the roles of three zany side characters: Sexual Chocolate soul singer Randy Watson, barbershop owner Clarence and Clarence’s old Jewish customer Saul. With a finely tuned balance of humor and heart, Akeem was Murphy at his most lovable — and audiences welcomed him back with open arms for the 33-years-in-the-making sequel Coming 2 America.

The best part: We still wish we could snag a seat in that barbershop, where the joke writing shines nearly as brightly as Clarence’s gold tooth. 

Watch it: Coming to America on Apple TV, HBO Max, Prime Video