See Eddie Murphy In Beverly Hills Cop 4 With First Ever Reveal

But Beverly Hills Cop 4 is not the first time Eddie Murphy has returned to his roots recently, having starred once again as Prince Akeem of the fictional African nation of Zamunda in the Coming to America sequel, titled Coming 2 America. That film was originally planned as a theatrical release from Paramount Pictures, but the distribution rights were sold to Amazon and the film was released on Prime Video in 2021 due to the pandemic. Critical response was mixed, but the film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling, along with nominations for a BET Best Movie Award and a People’s Choice Favorite Movie Award, among others.

As Eddie Murphy continues to stage a comeback, Beverly Hills Cop 4 might seem like an inevitability, especially given the many sequels that have been made in recent years carrying on decades-old franchises. But the success of these films often makes them attractive to cast members from the original movies. For example, Coming 2 America brought Arsenio Hall back to movie screens, and Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley will see the returns of Bronson Pinchot as Serge, Judge Reinhold as Billy Rosewood, and Paul Reiser as Jeffrey.

Taylour Paige also joins Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop 4 as his daughter, who is a criminal defense attorney. It is she who gets him involved in a new case in California, bringing him into contact with an LAPD special-unit officer, played by Kevin Bacon, and introducing him to a new partner, played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

The mix of old cast of new and the revitalization of a long-cold franchise with iconic status echoes the recent returns of ’80s classics in movies like Top Gun: Maverick and Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which is getting its own sequel, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, next year as well.

Like the Coming to America sequel before it, Beverly Hills Cop 4 will only be bringing Eddie Murphy and his co-stars to small screens, releasing on Netflix instead of to theaters. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Mark Molloy, the film catches up with Murphy’s unruly and comical detective, who continues to be a thorn in the side of authority figures like Bacon’s character and, according to Bruckheimer, is paired up with straight man Gordon-Levitt to hilarious effect.

The producer also says the film is about “heartstrings,” meaning the emotional underpinning of the story more than the jokes or the action, both of which the film promises in spades.

We’ll find out how the sequel stacks up to its predecessors when Eddie Murphy returns in Beverly Hills Cop 4 on Netflix next year.