Eddie Murphy is reigniting his long-standing feud with David Spade, calling out the comedian over a 1995 “Saturday Night Live” joke that stung deeply.
Spade, now 59, had taken a jab at Murphy’s career during a “Weekend Update” segment, saying, “Look children, it’s a falling star. Make a wish,” after Murphy’s film “Vampire in Brooklyn” flopped.
“Most people that get off that show, they don’t go on and have these amazing careers. It was personal,” Murphy, 63, said on the New York Times’ “The Interview” podcast, expressing his frustration with the quip. “It was like, ‘Yo, how could you do that?’ My career? Really? A joke about my career? I thought that was a cheap shot. And I felt it was racist.”
Murphy, who was a star on “SNL” from 1980 to 1984, emphasized his significance to the show, claiming it wouldn’t have survived without him.
“And now you’ve got somebody from the cast making a crack about my career,” Murphy went on to explain. “I know that he can’t just say that. A joke has to go through these channels. So the producers thought it was OK to say that. And all the people that have been on that show, you’ve never heard nobody make no joke about anybody’s career.”
The “Coming To America” star’s anger extended to both Spade and “SNL.”
In his memoir, “Almost Interesting,” Spade recounted a furious phone call from Murphy, saying, “David Spade, who the f–k do you think you are?!! Honestly? Who. The. F–k. Going after ME?? You dumb motherf–ker! I’m off-limits, don’t you know that? You wouldn’t have a job if it weren’t for me. Talking s–t about me??”
Spade admitted in his book that he felt terrible about the situation and accepted the backlash.
Murphy, meanwhile, stayed away from “SNL” for over 30 years after the incident, only returning to host in 2019, with guest appearances by Dave Chapelle, Chris Rock, and Tracy Morgan.
Reflecting on the feud, Murphy told “The Interview,” “In the long run, it’s all good. I’m cool with David Spade. Cool with Lorne Michaels. I went back to ‘SNL.’ I’m cool with everybody. It’s all love.”
