Here's a novel idea: Create the mother of all mismatches by putting Eddie Murphy in a chase caper with a hapless co-star, and watch the hilarious sparks fly.
That was the recipe for Murphy's 1982 breakout "48 Hrs.," the action comedy co-starring Nick Nolte, and then his blockbuster movie series "Beverly Hills Cop." And here we are again with "The Pickup" (streaming Aug. 6 on Prime Video), which pairs Murphy with that delightfully human Goofy, Pete Davidson.
For Murphy, 64, there's an unmistakable pride that comes with launching a unique movie genre.
"The first real action comedy of this kind was '48 Hrs.' because before that, remember it was all Clint Eastwood saying, 'Go ahead, make my day,' and Charles Bronson in 'Death Wish,' all these hard-nosed cops, " says Murphy, casual on a video call in a sleeveless T-shirt.
"After our movie, it seemed suddenly every tough guy had the one-liners: (Arnold Schwarzenegger's) 'Hasta la vista' or (Bruce Willis') 'Yippee ki-yay.' So, yeah, I kind of pioneered the genre."
