{"id":593880,"date":"2026-04-19T15:41:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T15:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/593880\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T15:41:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T15:41:09","slug":"eddie-murphy-honored-with-afi-life-achievement-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/593880\/","title":{"rendered":"Eddie Murphy honored with AFI life achievement award"},"content":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 Eddie Murphy<\/a> took a moment to look out at the star-studded room at the American Film Institute ceremony \u2014 at his family, his peers, the people who have shared his journey \u2014 and let it all sink in.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing all of my family, all my kids, my beautiful wife, and seeing all the different people I worked with, I\u2019m just really filled up,\u201d said Murphy, who received the life achievement award<\/a> at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Saturday night. \u201cThis is a special moment. I wish y\u2019all could feel what I\u2019m feeling, see what I\u2019m seeing. I almost teared up. I\u2019m going to get backstage and cry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just before accepting the award, Murphy was met with a standing ovation, stepping onstage and moving through the ballroom as the applause followed. Along the way, he passed Spike Lee<\/a>, Martin Lawrence<\/a>, Dave Chappelle<\/a>, Chris Rock<\/a>, Arsenio Hall and Judge Reinhold. <\/p>\n

The tribute, which also featured appearances from Bill Burr, Kevin Hart, Eva Longoria, Da\u2019Vine Joy Randolph and Kenan Thompson, will premiere as a special on Netflix on May 31.<\/p>\n

Murphy, 65, has moved from a teenage stand-up sensation to a breakout force on \u201cSaturday Night Live\u201d to a box office mainstay with films like \u201cBeverly Hills Cop,\u201d \u201cComing to America,\u201d \u201cThe Nutty Professor\u201d and the \u201cShrek\u201d franchise.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

\"Ruth<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Large images from those defining moments filled the venue stage, tracing a career that has crossed stand-up, television and film.<\/p>\n

\u201cEddie made us laugh and made our nation feel better,\u201d said Lee, who presented the award to Murphy. \u201cI took a camera and told stories on how our nation could be better. \u2026 We both pushed culture forward. … Every step of this journey, Eddie has been true to himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Comedians pointed to Murphy\u2019s influence across generations.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no us without you,\u201d Rock said. <\/p>\n

Lawrence, who starred in the film \u201cLife\u201d with Murphy, shared a personal moment from early in his career, recalling how Murphy once declined his request for a photo. But now, that shouldn\u2019t be a problem since their children married each other in 2025.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow I can get all the pictures I want,\u201d Lawrence said with a smile. \u201cBecause we\u2019re in-laws.\u201d<\/p>\n

Arsenio Hall, Murphy\u2019s longtime collaborator on \u201cComing to America,\u201d spoke about Murphy advocating for him in the film and highlighted the depth of his talent. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Eddie does a family film, he plays a whole damn family,\u201d Hall said.<\/p>\n

Chappelle reflected on studying Murphy\u2019s stand-up as a teenager watching \u201cRaw.\u201d He described Murphy as one of the defining figures in the industry and shared a recent visit to his home, where seeing Murphy\u2019s grandchildren playing offered a deeper perspective on his life.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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\u201cI would watch him every day after school like I was taking a class,\u201d said Chappelle, who also spoke on an interview where he considered revisiting \u201cChappelle\u2019s Show,\u201d<\/a> a project he once stepped away from, calling it one of the most meaningful experiences of his career. <\/p>\n

Chappelle said Murphy encouraged him to revisit the idea, and even joked about joining the project if it comes to fruition. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou are still the hero I want to be,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Stevie Wonder described Murphy\u2019s impact as something that extends beyond comedy. He showed his deep admiration for the comedian-actor.<\/p>\n

\u201cLaughter can make life livable,\u201d Wonder said. \u201cEddie is more than a comedian \u2026 he is a universal reminder.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mike Myers, who co-starred in the \u201cShrek\u201d films with Murphy, credited him with helping define one of animation\u2019s most beloved characters, calling his character portrayal of Donkey a \u201cmasterpiece.\u201d <\/p>\n

Jennifer Hudson delivered a musical tribute with performances from \u201cDreamgirls,\u201d backed by a house band led by Rickey Minor.<\/p>\n

The gala, which raised more than $2.5 million to support AFI\u2019s nonprofit education programs, also included the presentation of the Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal to cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw,<\/a> who spoke about finding her voice through the institute.<\/p>\n

Murphy\u2019s career has spanned nearly 50 years, from stand-up stages to blockbuster films, with a versatility that has kept him relevant across generations. In 2023, he received the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes and has spoken about embracing a deeper appreciation for his journey.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you for giving me this night that I will remember forever and ever and ever,\u201d Murphy said. \u201cI love you.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 Eddie Murphy took a moment to look out at the star-studded room at the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":593881,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[1927,29604,2224,258919,107525,2692,35659,1036,165075,112026,35732,88,29395,36086,258920,89423,55676,3031,210436,25222,203647,206,258918,57088,11477],"class_list":{"0":"post-593880","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-ap-top-news","9":"tag-arsenio-hall","10":"tag-arts-and-entertainment","11":"tag-autumn-durald-arkapaw","12":"tag-bill-burr","13":"tag-celebrity","14":"tag-chris-rock","15":"tag-comedy","16":"tag-davine-joy-randolph","17":"tag-dave-chappelle","18":"tag-eddie-murphy","19":"tag-entertainment","20":"tag-eva-longoria","21":"tag-jennifer-hudson","22":"tag-judge-reinhold","23":"tag-kenan-thompson","24":"tag-kevin-hart","25":"tag-los-angeles","26":"tag-martin-lawrence","27":"tag-media-and-entertainment-industry","28":"tag-mike-myers","29":"tag-movies","30":"tag-rickey-minor","31":"tag-spike-lee","32":"tag-stevie-wonder"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=593880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/593880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/593881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=593880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=593880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=593880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}