Eddie Murphy has finally revealed in his new Netflix documentary why he stayed away from the show that helped make him a star. Murphy was a stand-up comic working in various clubs before becoming a regular on Saturday Night Live in 1980, where he helped revitalize the late night show’s fledgling ratings, while at the same time becoming a household name. After leaving the sketch comedy series in 1984 to pursue a career in film, it would be another 31 years before he returned.
In the Netflix documentary, Being Eddie, the star revealed that the reason he stayed away from SNL for so long was because of a tasteless joke that was made about him by David Spade in 1995 following the release of Vampire in Brooklyn. The Wes Craven-directed horror comedy was another in a string of critical flops for Murphy, who was struggling at the time to recapture the magic of some of his earlier 80s comedies. “Look, children, it’s a falling star,” Spade joked on SNL’s Weekend Update, referring to Murphy’s dwindling star power. “Make a wish! You make a Hollywood minute omelet, you break some eggs.”
“I just had Vampire in Brooklyn come out,” Murphy said in the Netflix doc. “The audience there said ‘Boo’ and hissed at him for saying it, right? So I was like, hurt. My feelings was hurt […] The joke had went through all of those channels that the joke has to go through, and then he was on the air saying, ‘Catch a falling star,'” he continued, adding:
“So I wasn’t like, ‘F*** David Spade.’ I was like, ‘Oh, f*** SNL. F*** y’all. How y’all going to do this s***? That’s what y’all think of me? Oh, you dirty motherf***ers.’ I was like that. And that’s why I didn’t go back for years.”
Eddie Murphy Eventually Made Peace with the Past
Eddie Murphy in Candy Cane LanePrime Video /Courtesy Everett Collection
During the 31 years that Murphy stayed away from SNL, his career would eventually recover from the likes of Vampire in Brooklyn, and he would go on to star in hits such as the Shrek franchise, Mulan, Dreamgirls, and The Nutty Professor. He eventually found his way back to Saturday Night Live, making a brief appearance on the show’s 40th anniversary special in 2015, and then hosting a full episode in 2019. Speaking about his return in Being Eddie, he said:
“I was like, you know what? F*** this. SNL is part of my history. I need to reconnect with that show because that’s where I come from. That little friction that I had with SNL was 35 years ago. I don’t have no smoke with no David Spade. I don’t have any heat or none of that with nobody.”
Following a triumphant return to the Beverly Hills Cop franchise in 2024, Murphy will once again be lending his voice talents to the Shrek series for a new sequel that’s now set to hit theaters in 2027. Murphy will reprise his role of Donkey in the animated sequel, Shrek 5, which is currently in production. As we await more news on that one, you can check out Being Eddie streaming now on Netflix.
Release Date
November 12, 2025
Director
Angus Wall
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