Eddie Murphy to star in wacky drama about cooking meals for a dying man’s girlfriend

When most people these days think of Eddie Murphy, they think of the fun-loving Donkey from the Shrek movies. Deep beneath that cheery exterior, though, is a tortured, withered heart that’s full of nothing but grim, brutal seriousness. The problem is that Eddie Murphy is so good in comedies that he usually doesn’t gets a chance to show off his dramatic side. Until now, that is.

According to Australia’s Inside Film—which spins in the opposite direction of any Inside Film‘s above the equator—Murphy has been cast in Driving Miss Daisy director Bruce Beresford’s upcoming movie about a chef who gets hired to cook for a dying man’s girlfriend and her daughter. Murphy will play the chef—a part that was originally going to go to Samuel L. Jackson—and the script will be written by Californication’s Susan McMartin. The project, which is still untitled, is being billed as a straight drama, so don’t look for Murphy to sing any Smash Mouth songs or talk in any funny voices. Also, it will be Murphy’s first non-comedic role since either Meet Dave or Norbit.