Eddie Murphy’s latest film, “The Pickup”, has been deemed one of his worst movies in recent years. The straight-to-video comedy surrounds Murphy with a talented cast, including Eva Longoria and Pete Davidson, but fails to elevate the hackneyed material.
Murphy plays Russell, an armored messenger, while Davidson stars as Travis, his doofus partner who nearly shoots up a bank after misreading a random phrase. Despite some entertaining moments from the supporting actors, the film’s plot is marred by implausible action sequences and weak romantic chemistry between Zoe (Keke Palmer) and Travis.
Murphy struggles to hide his age and boredom, delivering underwhelming performances throughout. The script, penned by Kevin Burrows and Matt Mider, leaves much to be desired, drawing comparisons to a web series about anthropomorphic lobsters. With a runtime of 90 minutes, “The Pickup” is likely to leave viewers wondering how so much time was wasted on this uninspired film.
With Murphy’s increasing reluctance to perform his own stunts at age 64 and the waste of comedic talent in supporting roles, it’s clear that “The Pickup” has been hijacked by a subpar script. While it may not harm Murphy’s reputation long-term, fans of the actor will likely remember this underwhelming experience instead.
“The Pickup” is now available on Amazon Prime Video.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/aug/05/pickup-review-eddie-murphy