Keke Palmer held back her inner superfan while working alongside Eddie Murphy on the set of The Pickup, a new heist comedy now streaming on Prime Video, choosing professionalism over peppering the comedy legend with questions.
The actress, known for her roles in Scream Queens and Nope, told Entertainment Weekly that she and co-star Pete Davidson made a conscious effort to avoid overwhelming Murphy with curiosity about his decades-long career.
“I asked him questions and stuff, but it was kinda like being on set with the wise sage, so I didn’t want to overdo it,” Palmer said. “Me and Pete talked about that all the time, where it’s like — you want to know so much and you could literally spend every day interviewing him, but you also want to be respectful of the fact that this isn’t an interview and this is his job and we’re at work. So I was really trying to be as professional as possible.”
Palmer, who grew up watching Murphy’s iconic films with her father, said his work holds deep personal meaning. But it wasn’t until the press tour that she felt a deeper connection with the Beverly Hills Cop star.
“After the movie, when you get to spend more time together off-set, obviously, you do get familiar with people, and I think I started to see that Eddie really got me just as much as I got him,” she said. “It’s been really cool because when we were doing press, he said that I reminded him of him. I had no idea that he was watching me, or that he was aware of me, and that really touched me.”
The Pickup, which pairs Murphy’s sharp comedic timing with a new generation of talent, is currently available for streaming on Prime Video.