Eddie Murphy will give voice to the animated lead character in Alcon Entertainment's live action/animated big screen adaptation of the of the 1970s Hanna-Barbera animated TV series Hong Kong Phooey, it was announced by Alcon co-founders and co-CEO's Broderick Johnson and Andrew A. Kosove.
In addition to voicing the character of Donkey in the box-office hit Shrek franchise, Eddie Murphy was also the voice of Mushu, the Dragon, in the successful animated epic Mulan. Eddie Murphy will next be seen in the comedies Tower Heist, co-starring Ben Stiller from Universal Studios and A Thousand Words, from DreamWorks.
Alex Zamm (Chairman of the Board) will direct. Broderick Johnson and Andrew A. Kosove will produce with Jay Stern and Brett Ratner. Steven P. Wegner will executive produce.
State Broderick Johnson and Andrew A. Kosove: "We could not be happier that Eddie Murphy will star as Hong Kong Phooey. There is no overstating his contributions to cinema, and to such enduring stars of family entertainments such as Shrek and Dr. Dolittle. We look forward to watching him re-imagine yet another classic character."
Based on the 70's cult classic Hanna Barbera animated TV series, a mild-mannered dog named PENRY (Murphy) stumbles into a mystic ceremony and is accidentally granted mystic powers, including the ability to walk, talk, and do kung fu. Under the tutelage of his kung fu master, Penry dons a costume and becomes Hong Kong Phooey, and with the help of his trusting sidekick Spot the cat cleans up a rogues gallery of wacky criminals.