Eddie Murphy Doesn't Believe His Infamous 2007 Flop Is One Of The Worst Movies Ever

Not too many people seem to like Brian Robbins' 2007 comedy film "Norbit." It received horrendous notices when it was released, gaining a mere 9% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 122 reviews. Critics noted that the film is full of anger, cruelty, mugging, unfunny slapstick, and old-fashioned racial stereotypes. 

Eddie Murphy plays the title character, a mild-mannered orphan who, as a child, was saved from bullies by an even stronger bully named Rasputia. Rasputia insisted back then that her rescue makes them boyfriend/girlfriend, and the pair grow up in an incredibly unhealthy relationship. Murphy also plays Rasputia, sporting heavy makeup and a "funny" fat suit designed by Rick Baker (who received an Academy Award nomination for his makeup work). Rasputia is a horrid villain, but Norbit is too shy to break up with her, even though he would much rather date his more caring childhood friend Kate (Thandiwe Newton). A lot of the film's humor comes from watching Rasputia abuse everyone in her field of vision. 

Murphy also plays Norbit's adopted father, Mr. Wong, who ran the combo orphanage/Chinese restaurant where he grew up. Murphy playing an Asian man, however, isn't the least bit amusing. Some audiences at least enjoyed it, as "Norbit" ended up making a respectable $159 million on its $60 million budget. Critically, though, the damage was immeasurable. Eventually, the Razzies got a hold of the film and nominated it for Worst Picture, Worst Director, Worst Actor (for Murphy), Worst Actress (also for Murphy), Worst Supporting Actor (also also for Murphy), Worst Screenplay, and Worst Screen Couple. 

Did "Norbit" deserve all that hate? Murphy doesn't seem to think so. Indeed, in a 2025 interview with EW, Murphy defended "Norbit," saying that, yes, he thinks the film is funny, and, yes, people were unjustly cruel to it. 

However awfully "Norbit" was reviewed, there was certainly a "blood in the water" mentality surrounding its release. Because it looked awful, many assumed that it was, sight unseen. The Razzies often go after such notorious films with a wolfpack fervor, ripping apart movies that are already widely unpopular. "Norbit" may not be a good movie — it may be aggressively bad, even — but did it deserve its savage reputation? 

One might assume it was one of the worst movies of all time. 2007's "Norbit" was playing in theaters when 2006's Academy Awards were broadcast on television, a year that Murphy was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for "Showgirls." He didn't win the award, however, and some have theorized that "Norbit's" presence in the popular consciousness cost him the Oscar. Murphy, however, maintains that it's a fine comedy with plenty of hilarious things in it. In his words: 

"'Norbit' came out right after I got that Oscar nomination. There were articles like, 'How can he get an Oscar? He did this!' They're two different movies ... I wrote 'Norbit' with my brother, Charlie, and we think 'Norbit' is funny ... It came out, and they gave me Razzie Awards for worst actress, worst actor, and worst actor of the decade. And I was like, 'Come on now, s*** ain't that bad.' They was just hatin' on me ... To this day, I like 'Norbit' ... There's stuff in 'Norbit' that makes me laugh."

Murphy, now 64, has had a wild career replete with enormous hits as well as horrible bombs. His highs have been very high, and his lows very low. "Norbit" may have been one of the low points, critically, but it was a modest success. Indeed, "Norbit" still occasionally tops streaming charts, so audiences are still interested. Brian Wilson said it was a favorite. Also, Murphy loved it. It was, at the very least, enough for him.