Eddie Murphy is a hilarious comedian who has become an A-list actor with his iconic characters and classic movies. Even though he began his career in the '70s, he didn't truly start getting recognition for his talented acting skills until the '80s when he starred in his breakout movies, 48 Hrs., the Beverly Hills Cop series, and Coming to America. Then the '90s and early 2000s were even more successful for him. He voiced his two most beloved characters, Mushu and Donkey, at that time and that was one of the highest points in his career.
Mulan and Shrek have had millions of fans since they came out and Eddie gained a lot more fans when they saw his awesome characters. He hasn't had as much success since then, but the characters he played will always be ones that people remember. Let's take a look at what Eddie Murphy made for each of his most famous characters.
7 ‘Shrek’ - $3 Million
This might be Eddie Murphy’s most famous role. Donkey wouldn’t be the same without him and his character made the movie even better. He made the scenes hilarious and his voice acting skills made his character believable. According to Heavy, “For his role as Donkey in the Shrek movies, Eddie Murphy became one of the highest-paid voice actors in Hollywood. A 2010 Forbes piece named him one of the industry’s top 10 A-list voice actors, which speaks to the power of Dreamworks’ animated film series. Murphy was paid $3 million for his role in the first Shrek.”
6 ‘Coming To America’ - $8 Million
Coming to America is the first live-action hit movie Eddie starred in. He played Prince Akeem, a spoiled prince who goes to America to look for a wife and he has a hilarious adventure along the way. This was when he was just beginning his career as an actor and he made millions from it. “In 1987, he earned $8 million for Beverly Hills Cop II, that's the same as around $18 million today after adjusting for inflation. He earned another $8 million the next year for Coming to America,” according to Heavy. His $8 million salary from the 1988 comedy film must be equivalent to at least $18 million or more today. The sequel, Coming 2 America, just came out last year and Eddie probably made a lot more money with it than he did with the first movie.
5 ‘Shrek 2’ - $10 Million
Eddie got another chance to play his favorite and most beloved character, Donkey. Donkey still has a big part in Shrek 2, but the story is a little more centered around Shrek and Fiona. Since they got married at the end of the first one, they have to combine their lives together and figure out how to make it work with Fiona’s royal family. Although his part in the movie is a little bit less, he made even more with this sequel. According to Heavy, after he received $3 million for the first Shrek movie, “his salary dramatically increased by the second installment, for which he was paid $10 million.”
4 ‘Shrek Forever After’ - $12 Million
Shrek Forever After is the fourth and last movie in the Shrek franchise, but the reason Eddie’s salary for Shrek the Third isn’t on here is because it isn’t known. Eddie didn’t share what he made for that movie, but it must have been around $10 to $12 million since that’s what he made for the second and fourth Shrek movies. He made the most with the last one. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Eddie earned about “$4 million for Shrek Forever After (potentially as much as $12 million with backend points).” He was originally supposed to receive $4 million for the animated movie, but he earned more than that after it was released since it made so much at the box office.
3 ‘The Nutty Professor’ - $16 Million
The Nutty Professor was one of the other popular live-action movies Eddie starred in and he played Sherman Klump along with some of his family members. He earned double what he made for Coming to America since it was eight years later and Hollywood was starting to recognize him as an A-list actor. “He earned $16 million for The Nutty Professor (1996)... For Nutty Professor II, he also received 20% of the gross receipts, which brought his total payday to more than $60 million from the film,” according to Celebrity Net Worth. Between The Nutty Professor and its sequel, he earned almost $80 between the both of them.
2 ‘Doctor Dolittle’ - $17.5 Million
Two years after he was in The Nutty Professor, he played Dr. John Dolittle in the classic family movie, Doctor Dolittle. It’s a movie that every 90s kid grew up watching. No one can forget an adorable movie where animals can talk. And he got a huge paycheck for the classic movie. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Eddie earned about “$17.5 million for Doctor Dolittle.” It was one of his highest paychecks for a movie at that time and he’s earning even more now. He also earned $20 million for the sequel, Doctor Dolittle 2.
1 ‘Mulan’ - Around $20 Million
Besides Donkey, Mushu is one of Eddie’s most famous and popular characters. Mulan is already an amazing animated classic, but Mushu’s character made it even better and made so many Disney fans laugh. “Murphy also voiced Mushu in Disney’s Mulan, and although it is not known exactly how much he was paid for this performance, the film grossed over $300 million worldwide in 1998. Needless to say, his paycheck must have been pretty hefty,” according to Heavy. We’re guessing he earned around $20 million since he earned about $15 to $20 million for his movies at that time and the movie made a lot of money at the box office. Eddie has other famous roles in Daddy Day Care, The Haunted Mansion, Norbit, and Tower Heist, but it’s not clear how much he earned for them.
