Eddie Murphy makes jokes about Will Smith. Image Source: The Daily Beast
Eddie Murphy makes jokes about Will Smith.
Eddie Murphy was awarded the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 80th annual Golden Globes Awards on Tuesday night at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, in California, and during his acceptance speech, he offered some key advice for up-and-comers in the industry.
Eddie Murphy said that he has been in the show business for 46 years and in film for 41 years, so this award has been a long time coming and is greatly appreciated. The actor expressed gratitude to his girlfriend Paige Butcher and the incredible children, saying that he could stand on the podium and keep on saying names of the people he cannot thank enough until they play piano, but he's going to wrap it up and share some very important piece of advice for the newcomers.
Eddie said that he wants everyone to understand that there is a convincing blueprint that they should adhere to to achieve accomplishment, wealth, durability, and tranquility of mind and that it's a blueprint that he has followed his entire career and is very simple. He went on to say that people should just pay their taxes, mind their own business, and keep Will Smith's wife's name out of their fucking mouth.
Eddie's last piece of advice was a reference to the infamous Academy Award altercation in which Will Smith stepped up on stage and smacked comedian-actor Chris Rock after he made a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith's alopecia, eliciting joyous, astounded audience's laughter. It was later reported that Chris Rock was not aware about Jada's health condition.
Since 1952, the Cecil B. DeMille Award has been awarded to exceptional filmmakers and entertainers in the entertainment business. Eddie Murphy was presented with the award by Tracy Morgan and Jamie Lee Curtis. Eddie Murphy co-starred in the original "Coming to America" and its 2021 sequel with Tracy Morgan, and he collaborated with Jamie Lee Curtis on "Trading Places" in 1983.
During an interview with Entertainment Tonight, post-ceremony, Eddie Murphy shared with Nischelle Turner and Kevin Frazier that he dropped the names because, in reality, he has worked with Jada Pinkett Smith and he loves Will Smith and Chris Rock, adding that it’s all love.
Eddie continued that receiving the Cecil B. DeMille Award is a prestigious honor and added that, as he said, when someone receives an honor like this when they are older, they appreciate it more. Eddie Murphy previously received six Golden Globe nominations, including "new star of the year" for the film 48 Hrs in 1983. Other acting nominations included Beverly Hills Cop, Dolemite Is My Name, Trading Places, and The Nutty Professor, Dreamgirls (for which he did receive his only Golden Globe win).
Helen Hoehne, President of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, said in December that they are honored to present the Cecil B. DeMille Award to the iconic and highly esteemed Mr. Eddie Murphy. She added at the time that they are all thrilled to be celebrating Eddie Murphy's lasting impact on film and television, both in front of and behind the camera, over decades.
Previous recipients of the Cecil B. DeMille Award have included Oprah Winfrey, George Clooney, Morgan Freeman, Jane Fonda, Harrison Ford, Steven Spielberg, Jodie Foster, Robin Williams, Denzel Washington, Tom Hanks, and others. The recipient of the awards is decided by the HFPA Board of Directors.
The infamous incident from the Academy Awards has been the talk of the town since it happened because a lot of people shared their views on it. Everyone hoped that people would be over it, but not. In July, Will Smith shared a video on his social media where he revealed that he did reach out to Chris Rock, who then refused to communicate with him, so Will Smith said that he is going to wait until Chris is ready to talk about it. Will explained that he is trying to be remorseful without being ashamed of himself and mentioned that he is a human being who made a mistake, and he is now trying to not think of himself as a piece of sh*t.
