The popular Beverly Hills Cop trilogy, which grossed over $700 million at the U.S. box office alone, is getting a long-awaited sequel in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. The fourth film will see Eddie Murphy reprising his role as Axel Foley. Following Beverly Hills Cop (1984), Beverly Hills Cop II (1987), and Beverly Hills Cop III (1994), this new installment has been a long time coming. It has been teased and postponed time and time again but has never been brought to fruition. Fortunately, given the franchise's huge and lingering popularity, Paramount Pictures has always been ready to authorize a new title. It has been a long and bumpy road, though.

The main concern and hesitation has mostly been on the part of the main lead himself. Murphy has claimed in several interviews that he wouldn't do another one of these movies until the script is complete and to his liking, which has been the biggest issue this production has faced...until now. Following the box office and acclaim of Top Gun: Maverick, Paramount Pictures certainly is hoping for lightning to strike twice with the long-awaited return of another 1980s franchise. Here's everything we know about Beverly Hills Cop: Alex F.

Updated January 10, 2024: This article has been updated by Jessica Peerez with new information regarding the upcoming Beverly Hills Cop film.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F: The Plot

The Beverly Hills Cop franchise follows Axel Foley, a brash Detroit cop who finds himself in the posh city of Beverly Hills, California, to investigate various crimes, from money laundering to drug rings to murder. Foley has his own unorthodox and intrepid method to help solve each case, but not without funny comebacks and a dirty mouth.

The plot of Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F will see Axel Foley return to Beverly Hills when the life of his daughter is threatened. The film takes the general idea of the planned television show, pairing Axel Foley with his kid. Yet, where the television series focused on a son, the movie has it with him and his daughter. This is a nice way to distinguish the film from other legacy sequels like Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Top Gun: Maverick, and A Good Day to Die Hard, which focuses on the son of an original character.

The official teaser trailer for Axel F, released by Netflix on December 14, 2023, gives viewers a glimpse of the chaos that awaits them in the fourth installment. True to himself, Foley manages to get himself in more than enough trouble while attempting to uncover the conspiracy that's behind the threat to his daughter Jane's life. Guns, bullets, and a plethora of car crashes await viewers as Axel pisses off plenty of people with his daughter and new partner by his side.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F: The Cast

There would be no Beverly Hills Cop without the iconic Eddie Murphy reprising his role as Axel Foley. With Murphy back in his role of the witty Detroit cop, he is joined by returning cast members Judge Reinhold as Detective Sergeant William 'Billy' Rosewood, John Ashton as Detective Sergeant John Taggart, Paul Reiser as Detective Jeffrey Friedman, and Bronson Pinchot as art connoisseur and weapons dealer Serge. Speaking of Murphy's skill in improvising and talent in the role of Foley, producer Jerry Bruckheimer told Tudum:

“Eddie's such an incredible artist. He can do drama, he can do comedy – he can do anything. And he’s the same Axel Foley. He’s still on the streets. He’s still doing what he does. Obviously with age you get wiser. But he still has the twinkle in his eye.”

Joining the cast of Beverly Hills Cop is Kevin Bacon. The actor will be taking on the role of the captain of the Beverly Hills Police Department. Bacon will be joined by Taylor Paige, who plays Jane, a criminal defense attorney and Foley's daughter, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who will star alongside Murphy as his new partner, Bobby Abbot.

Development: Hurdle After Hurdle

Plans for a fourth Beverly Hills Cop movie had been circulating since the late 90s but were officially announced in 2006 with original producer Jerry Bruckheimer onboard. However, with Bruckheimer passing the reigns of the film to Lorenzo di Bonaventura, the drawn-out journey of Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F becoming a reality began. By 2011, the film was shelved in favor of a television spin-off focusing on Axel's son, but just before it was supposed to air, Paramount decided it was also going to give the movie another try. In 2013, Bruckheimer returned as producer, and it was announced that Murphy would reprise his role as Axel Foley with Ratner directing. However, the development troubles for the film were not yet over. Ratner dropped out and the future of the film, yet again, turned murky.

Related: Eddie Murphy's 10 Best Performances of All Time

Come 2019, after a lot of back-and-forth, Paramount finally announced an official team-up with Netflix for the fourth movie while retaining the rights for the first three installments. During the long development cycle of the movie, the film changed hands multiple times, finally coming to a standstill with Mark Molly in the director's seat.

Difficulties also arose with filming development, which began in the late summer of 2022. After spending a long time in limbo, waiting for Murphy to agree to a good script, the creators had another body to impress: the city of Beverly Hills itself. Officials were weary at first, noting that their town did not have the same atmosphere as it did in the 80s, and despite the city's star-studded reputation, there were big concerns about how the Beverly Hills police force would be portrayed in the movie. However, despite barriers. Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F plowed ahead, with the release of the film now looming on the horizon.

Release Date

With its long and rocky road, the release date of Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley has been pushed back not just months, but years. The film was originally slated for release on March 25, 2016, but on May 6, 2015, it was pulled from Paramount Pictures' release schedule due to script issues.

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At the time of writing, Netflix has not announced a release date for Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. However, the streamer has confirmed that the film will take to screens in the summer of 2024, nearly 40 years after the release of the original movie. If Netflix wanted to follow a similar pattern of the release, they would release the film on Memorial Day weekend, as both Beverly Hills Cop 2 and Beverly Hills Cop 3 were released on Memorial Day weekend. Unlike the first three films of the franchise, which were released theatrically, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is set to premiere only on Netflix, skipping a theatrical release.