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Eddie Murphy on whether he would revisit Donkey role for 'Shrek 5'

The comedian also said he thinks his famous equine character is funnier than Puss in Boots and deserves his own spinoff movie.

Could the "noble steed" be back for "Shrek" round five?

Eddie Murphy, the voice of Donkey in the "Shrek" franchise, weighed in on whether his beloved character would be back for a fifth film while on CTV's "Etalk" on Thursday, Jan. 26.

"Oh, I'd absolutely be open," the 61-year-old said of a potential new movie. "If they ever came out with another 'Shrek,' I'd do it in two seconds. I love Donkey."

Though fans would surely love another reprise of their favorite hoofed creature, Murphy offered another idea — one that put Donkey (and maybe his dragon paramour) in the spotlight.

"They should have done a Donkey movie," Murphy said, comparing his animated character to Puss in Boots, the fierce cat from the "Shrek" films voiced by Antonio Banderas who has his own spinoff movies, the last of which came out in 2022.

"Donkey is funnier than Puss in Boots. I mean, I love Puss in Boots, but he ain't funnier than Donkey," he added with a laugh.

The "You People" star then addressed DreamWorks, the production company responsible for "Shrek," saying he's ready and waiting for the next role.

"DreamWorks, if y'all want to do it, just call me," he said. "I'm sitting and ready to do Donkey."

Murphy will stay busy in the mean time. He's staring in the fourth "Beverly Hills Cop" movie this year, and hinted that another stand-up comedy show could be in the works during an interview with Entertainment Tonight Canada last week.

"I want to have a show that reflects everything — my entire experience that I've had and everything that I do," he explained. "It's like, how do I get that on stage?"

Around 2011, the comedian took a hiatus from the big screen, saying on a 2021 episode Marc Maron’s “WTF” podcast that he intentionally stopped making movies after several were not received well.

“I was making these s----- movies. I was like, ‘This s--- ain’t fun. They’re giving me Razzies," he said, referring to the Golden Raspberry Awards, which recognize the worst in cinema. He said the clarifying moment came when he was given the Razzie for Worst Actor of the Decade in 2010. "It was like, ‘Maybe it’s time to take a break,'" he said.

Murphy made few minor screen appearances: First in "A Thousand Words" in 2012, then in 2016's "Mr. Church." He made his big return to the screen in 2019 with Netflix's "Dolemite Is My Name." He also hosted "Saturday Night Live" that same year, earning him his first Emmy award.

Murphy noted that he didn't anticipate his break from film to be quite so long.

“I was only gonna take a break for a year, then all of a sudden six years go by, and I’m sitting on the couch, and I’m like, I kinda could sit on this couch and not get off it,” he said. “But I don’t want to leave it the last bunch of s--- they see me do is bull----, so let me get off the couch and do some stuff and remind them that I’m funny.”

"Then if I want to come back to the couch again, I could do that,” he continued. “So, the plan was to go do ‘Dolemite,’ ‘Saturday Night Live,’ ‘Coming 2 America,’ and then do stand-up and then see how I felt afterwards. And then at least they’ll know I’m funny.”

At the 80th Annual Golden Globes in January, Murphy received the Cecil B. DeMille Award, which is “is presented to a talented individual for their outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.”