Chris Rock Jokingly Breaks Down How Eddie Murphy’s Home Studio Cost Him A $30 Million “Shrek” Payday

Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy

Chris Rock Jokingly Breaks Down How Eddie Murphy’s Home Studio Cost Him A $30 Million “Shrek” Payday

In another world, #ChrisRock might’ve been the voice behind Donkey.

The comedian recently appeared on a live taping of Fly on the Wall with Dana Carvey and David Spade, where he opened up about how close he came to landing a role in the #Shrek franchise. After confirming that his biggest “mail box check” came from the Madagascar films—where he voices Marty the zebra—Chris said that the Shrek cast “made so much money, none of them ever worked again. They all went like 20 years without working.”

He went on to explain that delays between the studio and #EddieMurphy, who voices Donkey, nearly led to him stepping into the role. “Eddie has a [recording] studio in his house, so all he has to do is go downstairs to do donkey,” Chris said. Laughing, he added that Eddie would sometimes take months to send in his lines, prompting DreamWorks to negotiate with him “at least twice” about taking over the part. But just as Chris was preparing to head into the studio, things would shift. “Eddie just went downstairs [to record]…and I’m out of $30 million,” he joked.

The original Shrek hit theaters in 2001 with a stacked cast that also included Mike Myers as Shrek and #CameronDiaz as Princess Fiona. The franchise has since expanded with multiple sequels and spin-offs, and a fifth installment is already on the way.