Eddie Murphy finally reveals why he left the 2007 Oscars early after losing for best supporting actor
Nineteen years after he mysteriously left the 2007 Oscars early, Eddie Murphy is finally clearing the air.
At the 79th Academy Awards in 2007, Murphy attended as a Best Supporting Actor nominee, his first, for his role as James "Thunder" Early in the critically acclaimed musical Dreamgirls. He starred alongside Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, and Jaimie Foxx.
In the same category were Alan Arkin, Jackie Earle Haley, Djimon Hounsou, and Mark Wahlberg. Arkin won the trophy for Little Miss Sunshine.
Soon after Arkin's acceptance speech, Murphy left the venue for the night. Media then speculated that the actor stormed out because he lost and was upset. In reality, Murphy left to avoid being "the sympathy guy all night."
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Murphy explained, "What happened was, I was at the Oscars, I had lost, and then people kept coming over to me and kept [patting] me on the shoulder. Clint Eastwood came and rubbed my shoulder."
"And I was like, oh no, no. I'm not gonna be this guy all night. Let's just leave. I didn't storm out. I was like, 'I'm not gonna be the sympathy guy all night'," Murphy added.
The loss was not all that surprising for Murphy, anyway. Before even learning that he would be pitted against Arkin, Murphy already predicted the late actor would win an award for his role as foul-mouthed grandfather Edwin Hoover.
Months before Arkin's Little Miss Sunshine would come out in theaters, film producer Jeff Katzenberg invited Murphy to a pre-screening.
"I watched Alan, and I hadn't been nominated or anything yet, and I watched the movie and I turned to Jeff afterwards and I said, 'Now that performance right there is one of those performances that will steal somebody's Oscar," Murphy said.
"No, I don't feel like he stole mine," he added.
In Dreamgirls, Murphy's character "Thunder" was an R&B star whose backup singers, The Dreamettes, were his label's way of making his sound more pop-friendly and marketable.
The film was nominated in eight categories, including Murphy's best supporting actor. It won for best supporting actress for Jennifer Hudson, as well as best achievement in sound mixing.
