Eddie Murphy’s made his feature film debut 1982’s 48HRS. This was an interesting choice for several reasons. Murphy had of course made his name as a comedian and at the time he was the reason the watch Saturday Night Live. One would expect that his first film would be a comedy. The film is but make no mistake 48HRS. is an cop drama film first and foremost. Also Murphy is not the star and his character does not make an appearance until almost 30mins into the film. Murphy handles the role with ease and had you not known his history with SNL you would not have guessed that he is a comedian. You can tell that Murphy was “hungry” in this film and in this scene particularly. This scene is the very definition of a star-making scene. If you did not believe that Murphy was a true talent before this scene you believed it when it’s over. His many imitators can only wish that they could pull off a scene like this. When Murphy says “There’s a new sheriff in town”, you believe it and audience stood up and took notice. Fact. He was awarded a Golden Globe for New Star of the Year for his role in this film.
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