The Ghostbusters That Almost Was

Who you gonna call? Well, long before it became common knowledge that the answer was “Ghostbusters,” the brilliant duo of Dan Aykroyd and Ivan Reitman had their sights set on none other than Eddie Murphy. But guess what? Eddie wasn’t interested and said, “Nope!” Alongside the late John Belushi, Murphy was a top choice to investigate the paranormal alongside Aykroyd. However, following Belushi’s untimely passing and Murphy passing on the role, Aykroyd had to regroup. He eventually found his ghost-busting pals in Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, and Ernie Hudson, who together turned Ghostbusters into the mega-hit of 1984!

Eddie’s Regrets

Fast forward to today, and Murphy looks back at that decision with a tinge of regret. In an interview about his documentary, Being Eddie, he confesses that Ghostbusters is among the roles he wishes he had taken. He said, “I was supposed to do Ghostbusters. Didn’t do that, and also turned down Rush Hour. Oh, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?—those are my top three ‘wish I would have done’ films.” Talk about a legendary list!

Why the Pass?

While it’s clearer why he bailed on Rush Hour, it’s a bit trickier to understand why he turned down Ghostbusters and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?. For the latter, he was in the running for the role of Eddie Valiant, the fed up detective stuck teaming up with a cartoon rabbit framed for a crime. Today, Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is a beloved classic, but even Bob Hoskins, who ultimately landed the role of Eddie, found it hard to grasp the vision of director Robert Zemeckis. Additionally, blending live-action with animation in those days was no walk in the park, and let’s be real: Eddie Murphy probably didn’t want to deal with that stress.

A Star on the Rise

And let’s not forget why Murphy opted out of Ghostbusters. As someone who was super into the supernatural, Aykroyd initially envisioned the film as a lengthy horror saga with a sprinkle of humor. Plus, after their success in Trading Places, it was clear that Murphy was about to skyrocket to fame. Did he really need to share the spotlight with a bunch of other SNL alums? Nah, we think not!

Timing Is Everything

In 1984, the movie posters told the whole tale. While Murphy was nowhere to be found on the Ghostbusters poster that hit theaters in June, he was front and center on the poster for Beverly Hills Cop, which dropped just a few months later. Talk about a glow up! Beverly Hills Cop thrived on Murphy’s whirlwind energy, transforming what initially started as a Sylvester Stallone action flick into a comedic triumph. Although Ghostbusters raked in slightly more cash—$370 million vs. Beverly Hills Cop’s $320 million—it didn’t overshadow the role Beverly Hills Cop played in catapulting Murphy into stardom.

Looking Back with a Smile

Today, Eddie seems to have made peace with his past decisions. He quips, “With Ghostbusters, I went ahead and did Beverly Hills Cop instead.” Given the four entries in the Beverly Hills Cop series, including the recent and well-received Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, can we really say he made a bad call? Sometimes, saying ‘no’ works out better than you think, even when the ghost-busting calls come flooding in!

Being Eddie is now streaming on Netflix. Don’t miss it, folks!