Eddie Murphy Shares His Thoughts on Leaving the Oscars Early After Losing for Dreamgirls
Eddie Murphy at the 2007 Oscars; Murphy in ‘Dreamgirls’ (2006).
Credit :
Paramount; Frazer Harrison/Getty
NEARLY 16 YEARS LATER, MURPHY REFLECTS ON OSCAR NIGHT
Eddie Murphy has shed light on his unexpected departure from the 2007 Academy Awards, where he lost the coveted Best Actor in a Supporting Role award to Alan Arkin. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Murphy shared that the emotional toll of the event prompted him to leave early, despite being anticipated as a strong contender for his role in Dreamgirls.
At 64, Murphy reminisced about the night, revealing that he sensed Arkin would clinch the Oscar after watching Little Miss Sunshine prior to the ceremony. “What happened was I was at the Oscars, I had lost, and then people kept coming over to me and kept [patting] me on the shoulder,” he recounted. “Clint Eastwood came and rubbed my shoulder. And I was like, ‘Oh, no, no, I’m not gonna be this guy all night. Let’s just leave.’”
Murphy clarified that his decision to leave was not out of anger but a desire to avoid becoming a focal point for sympathy. He dispelled rumors suggesting that he left due to missing Jennifer Hudson’s win for Best Supporting Actress or the performance of his co-stars celebrating their Best Original Song nomination.
He remarked that he had, in fact, predicted Arkin’s victory, citing the actor’s noteworthy performance as Edwin Hoover. “I literally watched the movie and I turned to Jeff [Katzenberg] afterwards and I said, ‘Now that performance right there is one of those performances that will steal somebody’s Oscar,’” Murphy recalled. He humorously added, “I said those exact words. I was like, ‘He could steal somebody’s Oscar,’ then he stole mine.”
Reflecting on his Oscar journey, Murphy observed that winning is often “more art than science." He elaborated, stating, “It’s not like, ‘Oh, you do this, and you do that, and you win the Oscar.’ No, it’s all this intangible stuff that comes with winning: campaigning and your past stuff and what do they owe you.”
Murphy concluded that Arkin’s win was well-deserved, acknowledging the culmination of talent and lifetime achievement that led to his Oscar triumph. “When you add all of that stuff into it, he totally deserves his Oscar for his whole career. He’s an amazing actor.”
In his new Netflix documentary, Being Eddie, Murphy also addressed the psychological impact of attending awards shows, particularly when leaving empty-handed. "The mindf— for me is that I get dressed and come to the thing, ’cause I would usually not go to award shows,” he shared. “Whenever I lose, I’m like, ‘These motherf—ers made me come all the way down. I could have f—ing lost at home.’"
Being Eddie is now available for streaming on Netflix.
