I Just Found Out About This George Clinton Biopic Thanks To Eddie Murphy, And Now I Desperately Want To See It Happen

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The new documentary Being Eddie, available on Netflix, is a fantastic look at the life and career of Eddie Murphy. It features insightful interviews and covers everything from his teenage years doing stand-up in New York, to his breakout role on Saturday Night Live, and his massive success in films like Trading Places, Coming to America, and the Shrek movies.

Towards the end of the movie, I got really excited to hear that Eddie Murphy is going to play George Clinton in a biopic. Details are still limited, but it sounds like the project is moving forward. I absolutely need to see this movie – it’s a fantastic pairing of one of my favorite actors and musicians! I’m really hoping it happens.

George Clinton Is A Hero Of Mine

As a child of the ‘90s, my first experience with George Clinton’s music wasn’t through his own songs like “Tear The Roof Off The Sucker” or “Chocolate City.” Instead, I discovered it through Dr. Dre’s iconic 1992 album, The Chronic, which used a lot of samples from Clinton’s work. I listened to that groundbreaking West Coast hip hop album – which really shook up mainstream America – for countless hours before realizing that the music beneath Dre and Snoop Dogg’s rapping was largely from Parliament and Funkadelic, the two bands led by George Clinton.

After figuring out where the music samples originated, I became completely immersed in creating my own music. For the past three decades, songs and albums by Parliament and Funkadelic – essentially the same band, though I won’t go into the details here – have been among my favorites. I’ve seen George Clinton and his group perform live many times, and every single show has been incredibly energetic and amazing. George Clinton’s life story is just as fascinating and unconventional as his music.

A Career That Has Spanned Decades

George Clinton began his musical journey with The Parliaments as a teenager in the mid-1950s, and remarkably, he’s still performing today at age 84 – a career spanning 70 years! He’s most famous for pioneering 1970s funk music with Parliament-Funkadelic, alongside Bernie Worrell and Bootsie Collins. Their music has had a lasting impact, becoming a foundational source of samples for countless hip hop songs, like those found on Dr. Dre’s The Chronic.

It’s remarkable that Bill Clinton has reached 84, especially considering his past and even appearing on The Masked Singer a few years back. He’s well-known for having battled drug addiction, including a 2003 arrest for cocaine possession, but it hasn’t stopped him. Amazingly, that arrest in Florida happened just weeks before he joined Phish on stage in Miami, and he still played with incredible energy.

Many people, including me, consider his music from the 1970s to be among the most important and enjoyable of the 20th century. I love how Clinton and P-Funk blended funk, soul, and rock – it’s music you can dance to, perfect for parties, but also surprisingly complex. Unlike a lot of dance music, you discover new layers with each listen. Their live performances, particularly in the 70s, were legendary and would be incredible to experience on the big screen – imagine seeing guitarist Garry Shider, aka “Diaper Man,” on an IMAX screen! It would be amazing.

Eddie Murphy Would Nail It

Eddie Murphy has a history of playing musicians, going beyond comedic roles like Randy Watson in Coming to America. He even received an Oscar nomination for his performance as James “Thunder” Early in Dreamgirls. That character actually reminds me a lot of George Clinton when he was first starting out with The Parliaments. I’d really like to see Murphy win an Oscar, and music biopics often lead to nominations.

Eddie Murphy is a talented musician as well, achieving a top ten hit with his song “Party All the Time” in 1985 and releasing several albums throughout his career. His collaboration with funk icon Rick James, who wrote and produced “Party All the Time,” is well-known, particularly among fans of the show Chappelle’s Show. He’s also famous for his spot-on impressions of musicians like Stevie Wonder and James Brown during his time on Saturday Night Live.

Will It Actually Happen?

We haven’t received many updates on this project since it was initially announced in 2022. Details have been limited, but Variety reported last November that Bill Condon, the director of Dreamgirls, was set to direct. He’s an excellent fit, considering Eddie Murphy’s previous work with Condon and Condon’s experience with visually dynamic films like Chicago and The Greatest Showman. The article also stated that Amazon MGM will be producing the movie.

We haven’t heard much since then, but before the release of Being Eddie, Murphy discussed the project with Netflix’s Tudum, saying:

I’m getting ready to do the George Clinton biopic, and I’m looking forward to that.

That’s definitely good news! However, we still don’t know when filming will start for the movie, or if it will be released in 2026. Murphy also mentioned he’s going to star in a new Pink Panther movie, which sounds fantastic. But right now, let’s get excited and have some fun!

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2025-11-23 16:09