Eddie Murphy is circling another older IP, as he’s in talks to star as Inspector Clouseau in MGM’s upcoming Pink Panther reboot. Sonic The Hedgehog director Jeff Fowler will helm the film from a script by Chris Bremner (Bad Boys For Life).
The Pink Panther franchise began with the 1963 comedy that starred Peter Sellers as Inspector Jacques Clouseau, a bumbling French police detective that quickly made the actor and character into a star.
Sellers would go on to reprise the role in 1964’s A Shot in the Dark, 1975’s The Return of the Pink Panther, 1976’s The Pink Panther Strikes Again, and 1978’s Revenge of the Pink Panther.
The character was also inhabited by Alan Arkin for one film in the 60s, Roger Moore in a later cameo appearance after Sellers’ death, and Steve Martin in two remakes in the 2000s.
The Pink Panther refers to the name of a valuable pink diamond at the center of a heist in the original film, and is only used as an animated character in the opening title sequence (although the films were so popular that the animated panther went on to have their own Flintstones-esque animated series).
This role makes total sense for Murphy – in fact it’s a surprise he wasn’t in heavy consideration for the mid-2000s reboots. This is just the latest reboot/legacy sequel Murphy has been involved in in recent years, having also starred in belated sequel Coming 2 America and currently developing Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley.
He was also recently seen in Netflix comedy You People alongside Jonah Hill, and is currently filming Christmas comedy Candy Cane Lane. He also recently publicly expressed interest in a Donkey spinoff movie in the Shrek franchise, after seeing the success of Puss In Boots: The Last Wish.
#Peace.Love.PinkPanther
