Wedding bells are ringing for Eddie Murphy.
The comedian has married Australian model Paige Butcher in a private ceremony, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. According to People magazine, which also shared exclusive photos from the event, Murphy and Butcher tied the knot on Tuesday, July 9, in Anguilla during an intimate ceremony attended by family and close friends.
The couple got engaged in September 2018 after dating since 2012. They share an 8-year-old daughter and a 5-year-old son. They welcomed their first child together in 2016, followed by their second in 2018 after their engagement.
Murphy, who is a father of 10, thanked Butcher and his children while accepting the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 2023 Golden Globe Awards. He said, “I want to say thank you to Paige and all of my amazing children for your love and support and inspiration.”
This is Murphy’s second marriage and Butcher’s first.
Murphy’s wedding comes amid his return to his iconic Beverly Hills Cop role as Axel Foley, decades after the original 1984 movie, with Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. The fourth installment premiered on Netflix on July 3, with Murphy’s character returning to Beverly Hills after his daughter’s life is threatened. He teams up with new partner Detective Bobby Abbott (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and old friends John Taggart (John Ashton) and Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) to uncover a conspiracy.
During an appearance on the Today show, Murphy joked about reprising the role, saying, “It felt like old man. I did Beverly Hills Cop when I was 21, and I’m 63 now.” He added, “Beverly Hills Cop was my first movie that I’m the lead in. If I travel overseas they call me Axel Foley.”
He emphasized the universal appeal of the character, saying, “Axel is an everyman. He’s not a superhero or a super-cop, he’s the everyman that rises to the occasion. I think that’s why people like it. And more than anything, he’s funny.”