Eight years after Norvitt hits cinemas, Eddie Murphy has yet to move away from the 2007 comedy. Even if he was criticized for one of the biggest “Oscar Campaign Killers” in Hollywood lore.
The comedian was praised for his performance as soul singer James “The Thunder” in the early days of Dream Girls, won the Golden Globe and Screen Actor Guild Award, and took over at the 79th Academy Awards, becoming a clear favourite of the best supporting actors. Then, just a week after the Oscar nomination was announced, Nobit was opened to the important Panmering. Alan Arkin eventually brought the Oscar home for Little Miss Sunshine, and the so-called “Norbit Effect” became a hot topic in the industry.
“Now, shit isn’t that bad.”
When he recently appeared on Complex’s 360 with Speedy Morman, Murphy challenged the idea that Nobit had sacrificed Oscars to him, and even had trouble with him being ranked among his worst films.
“I love Norbit,” Murphy said. “The (film) came out right after I was nominated for that Oscar. There were articles like, “How can he get an Oscar, did he do this?” They are two different films and I write with my brother (Murphy).
Murphy doubled and said, “I like Nobit. To this day, I like Nobit. There’s something about Norbit that makes me laugh.”
From box office success to Razzie Sweep
Nobit was directed by Brian Robbins. Brian Robbins also directed Murphy Comedy’s encounter with Dave and a Thousand Words. In the film, Murphy saw Murphy in multiple roles, including the meek title character, his overwhelming wife, Rasputia, and Wong, the owner of a Chinese orphanage. Despite maintaining a 9% critical score on Rotten Tomatoes and a generous score of 54% from audiences, the film surpassed US box office over the weekend, earning over $159 million ($60 million on a reported budget) worldwide. That elaborate make-up piece won an Oscar nomination.
At the 2010 Razzie Awards, Murphy was also named “The Worst Actor of the Decade,” and later pledged to stop appearing in “Shitty Movies.” My career rebound at Dolemite in 2019 was when my name won him the Razzie Redeemer Award.
Murphy didn’t win an Oscar in 2007, but Dream Girls co-star Jennifer Hudson brought home the best support actress. The film also won awards for best sound mixing, further cementing its place in award season history, with Norbit remaining as one of the footnotes of that stranger.
