Eddie Murphy Explains Why He Left the Oscars After Losing ‘Dreamgirls’

Eddie Murphy is setting the record straight about why he left the 2007 Oscars early after losing the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

The 64-year-old actor and comedian received his first Oscar nomination for his role as James “Thunder” in early 2006 in the musical drama “Dreamgirls,” which also starred Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, Anika Noni Rose and Danny Glover.

Murphy left the ceremony shortly after losing to “Little Miss Sunshine” star Alan Arkin, missing Hudson’s win for best supporting actress and his co-stars’ performance of three songs from “Dreamgirls” that were nominated for best original song.

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Murphy’s early departure led to rumors at the time that he had walked away angry over his loss. During a recent interview with Weekly entertainment, The star of ‘The Nutty Professor’ addressed the long-standing speculation and clarified why he really left the ceremony early.

“What happened was I was at the Oscars, I had lost, and then people kept coming up to me and staying [patting] me on the shoulder,” Murphy told the outlet. “Clint Eastwood came and rubbed my shoulder. And I thought, oh no, no, I’m not going to stay with this guy all night. Let’s just leave. I didn’t rush out. I was like, I’m not going to be the sympathizer all night.”

At the time, Murphy was widely considered the frontrunner for the Academy Award prior to the ceremony, as his role had previously earned him a Golden Globe Award, a SAG Award and a Critics’ Choice Award. However, Arkin gained late momentum as his performance in “Little Miss Sunshine” gained late momentum as the film became increasingly popular.

In the 2006 comedy-drama, Arkin, who died in 2023 at the age of 89, played Edwin Hoover, the cranky grandfather of beauty pageant contestant Olive Hoover (Abigail Breslin).

While speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Murphy recalled predicting Arkin’s upset win after watching “Little Miss Sunshine” for the first time months before its release, describing the late actor’s performance in the film as “hysterically funny.”

Arkin won his first Academy Award for his role in ‘Little Miss Sunshine’. (Vince Bucci/Getty Images)

“Jeff Katzenberg invited me to see ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ six months before it came out in theaters, and I literally looked at the movie and I looked at Alan – and I hadn’t been nominated or anything yet – and I looked at the movie and I turned to Jeff afterward and I said, ‘Now that performance is out there, one of those performances that will steal someone’s Oscar,'” Murphy recalled.

“I said those exact words. I was like, ‘He could steal someone’s Oscar,’ and then he stole mine,” Murphy said with a laugh before adding, “No, I don’t feel like he stole mine.”

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Murphy subsequently told Entertainment Weekly that he believes “winning an Oscar is more art than science.”

Dreamgirls also starred Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé and Jennifer Hudson. (GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty Images)

“It’s not like oh, you do this, and you do that, and you win the Oscar,” he explained. “No, it’s all the intangible things that come with winning: campaigning and things from the past and what do they owe you and… All those things come into play when you get Oscars.”

Murphy told the outlet he believed Arkin checked all the boxes for victory that year.

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“When you add all those things to it, he absolutely deserves his Oscar for his entire career,” Murphy said. “He’s a great actor.”

Murphy expressed disappointment in getting ready and attending award ceremonies, but left empty-handed. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

In his new Netflix documentary “Being Eddie,” Murphy expressed his sadness about getting ready for awards shows only to be there to lose.

“The biggest thing for me is getting dressed and going to the thing, because normally I wouldn’t go to award shows,” he said in the film, per Entertainment Weekly. “Every time I lose, I think, ‘These moms got me all the way down. I could have lost at home. I’m all in the damn tuxedo. What a waste of time.'”

Murphy previously called out the Academy for not recognizing black talent during an award presentation at the 67th annual Academy Awards in 1995.

Murphy recently released his new Netflix documentary “Being Eddie.” (Steve Granitz/FilmMagic)

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“When they came to me and said they wanted me to present the award for Best Picture, my manager came to me and told me the Academy had picked me,” Murphy told the audience. “My first reaction was to say, ‘No, I’m not going.’ And my manager said, ‘Why?’ And I said, ‘I’m not going because they haven’t recognized black people in movies.’ And he said, ‘What are you talking about? Black people win Oscars. ”

“I’ll probably never win an Oscar for saying this, but hey, who cares,” he said. “Actually, I might not get into any trouble, because the way things are going, we get one about every 20 years, so we don’t expect it until around 2004. By then, this will all blow over.

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“I just want you to know that I’m going to present this award, but black people will not be in the queue of society, and we will not be at the back anymore. I want you to recognize us.” They said, ‘Okay, it’s done.’ I said, ‘When do I have to be there?’ He said, ‘Well, you don’t have to be there until nine or ten o’clock. It’s the last prize of the evening.'”

In the film, Murphy shared his thoughts on why he has never won an Oscar. (Rich Polk/NBC via Getty Images)

Murphy said his comments may be the reason he never got an Oscar.

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“The next day it was like I didn’t say anything,” Murphy recalled in the documentary. “There were no pictures of me at the Oscars. There was no coverage of me. There was no mention of me saying that. It was like, I wasn’t at the Oscars and I didn’t get an Oscar. I didn’t get an Oscar, man. I did everything. I played everything.”

“I’ve done everything, and I’ve never gotten an Oscar, but I don’t think that’s why,” Murphy added with a grin.