Of his director, Martin comments, "It's very hard to find a director who understands comedy enough to laugh, who isn't afraid of the odd, quirky moment. Frank understands that something can be funny and you'll never know why."
He continues, "I originally wrote Eddie Murphy's role for a white actor, but then Brian Grazer suggested Eddie. I thought it was brilliant. After Eddie read the script, he came back and said 'this character should be an action star.' He imparted his knowledge, conveyed great ideas and then I went back and wrote it."
Murphy plays Kit Ramsey, an A-list Hollywood action star equipped with all the quintessential trappings: ego, entourage, wealth and paranoia. He also portrays Kit's soft-spoken, well-meaning and somewhat dim-witted brother, Jiff.
"I was so impressed with Steve's writing and humor, and playing different roles makes movie-making interesting for me," says Murphy.
Oz adds, "Steve wrote Kit with a swagger and Jiff as the sweet brother, but with somebody as brilliant as Eddie, both characters were wonderfully enriched. With minimal prosthetics, simply with attitude and talent."
Kit is the central figure in a movie he doesn't know he's in. Murphy elaborates, "People in bad outfits, spewing crazy dialogue, come out of nowhere and accost him. Not knowing they're actors, you can see why he might lose his mind. It's a very funny premise."
