Eddie Murphy spoke last year about how the long-developing Beverly Hills Cop 4 wasn’t working – that they couldn’t quite get the script right – and how he was instead pushing to make a television show, reprising his role in the pilot, and making occasional appearances through the season.
It looks like that’s getting closer and closer to a reality, with Deadline reporting that Murphy and Shawn Ryan, creator of The Shield, took meetings with ABC and Fox yesterday, and will be meeting with NBC and CBS today, with an hour-long pitch revolving around the son of Eddie Murphy’s Detroit detective Axel Foley moving to Beverly Hills to escape the shadow of his legendary dad.
Sony Pictures TV, where Ryan has a deal, will be producing, and it’s likely that the programme will be something all four networks are interested in.
Murphy may not have been held in the same standing in recent years as he was when Beverly Hills Cop was still current, but he’s still an incredibly recognisable face and name, and getting him to be a part of a TV programme could naturally attract a substantial audience.
Ryan will be writing the series, as well as executive producing alongside Murphy. No word yet on who might be included amongst directors, but no doubt news will be forthcoming if the meetings go well.
I admit that, despite their massive popularity, I’ve never actually seen the Beverly Hills Cop films, so don’t really have an educated opinion as to how good I should expect this to be. Naturally, many of you will have a better idea than me, so drop us your thoughts in the comments below, and let us know how excited/outraged you are.
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