First-look film deals are becoming a hot commodity in Hollywood, and Eddie Murphy is the latest start to strike one. The Oscar-winning actor is set to join forces with Amazon Studios after closing a first-look film deal, set to kick off with three movies that he’ll star in.
Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, described Murphy as “a legend both in front of and behind the camera” and said the studio is looking forward to their future partnership.
“With undeniable comedic and dramatic genius, he consistently delivers entertaining, original stories and characters to audiences around the world. We could not be more excited to help carry on the tradition and to officially welcome Eddie into the Amazon family,” stated Salke.
Earlier this year, Murphy starred in Coming 2 America, which was picked by Amazon from Paramount for $125 million. This proved to be the right move for Amazon Studios, and they reported this movie had the best opening weekend on their streaming service Amazon Prime. They didn’t share viewership figures, but Nielsen later reported that the film totaled 1.4 billion minutes-watched over its first week of release, meaning it received 1.27 million views.
