Beverly Hills Cop

Beverly Hills Cop is a 1984 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Martin Brest, with a screenplay by Daniel Petrie Jr., and story by Danilo Bach and Daniel Petrie Jr. It stars Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, a street-smart Detroit detective who visits Beverly Hills, California, to solve the murder of his best friend. Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Ronny Cox, Lisa Eilbacher, Steven Berkoff, Paul Reiser, and Jonathan Banks appear in supporting roles.

This first film in the Beverly Hills Cop franchise shot Murphy to international stardom, won the People's Choice Award for "Favorite Motion Picture", and was nominated for both the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1985. The film was released on December 5, 1984 by Paramount Pictures. An immediate blockbuster, it received positive reviews and earned $320 million at the worldwide box office, making it the highest-grossing film released in the U.S. in 1984. In December 2024, around the time of the film’s 40th anniversary and three months after John Ashton’s death, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Adjusted for inflation, it is the highest-grossing R-rated film in the U.S. since 1977, with a total box office gross of $730,714,743 in 2024.

Axel Foley is a plainclothes Detroit police detective whose latest unauthorized sting operation goes sour when two uniformed officers intervene, resulting in a high-speed chase through the city that causes widespread damage. Axel's superior, Inspector Douglas Todd, reprimands him for his reckless behavior and threatens to fire him unless he changes his ways.

Axel arrives at his apartment to find it has been broken into by his childhood friend, Michael "Mikey" Tandino. Mikey had done prison time for a car theft the pair had committed in their youth, but has since landed a job as a security guard in Beverly Hills thanks to mutual friend Jenny Summers. Mikey reveals he has some German bearer bonds but does not explain how he obtained them. Returning to the apartment after going to a bar, Axel and Mikey are taken by surprise by two men, Zack and Casey, who knock Axel unconscious, confront Mikey about the bonds, and murder him.

Inspector Todd refuses to assign Axel to Mikey's murder investigation and Axel travels to Beverly Hills to solve the crime himself. Jenny learns about Mikey's ties to Victor Maitland, owner of the art gallery that employs her. Axel goes in disguise to Maitland's office to question him about Mikey, but is ejected by Maitland's bodyguards and arrested. Beverly Hills Police Department Lieutenant Andrew Bogomil assigns Sergeant John Taggart and Detective Billy Rosewood to follow Axel, who humiliates them by disabling their car's exhaust with a banana. Rosewood and Taggart's dislike of Axel changes to mutual respect when they co-operatively foil a robbery at a striptease bar.

Axel infiltrates one of Maitland's warehouses, where he finds evidence of drug smuggling and is arrested after a scuffle with Zack at Maitland's country club. Beverly Hills Police Chief Hubbard, who has learned of Axel's private investigation, orders him escorted out of town. Axel convinces Billy to take him and Jenny to the warehouse, where he expects another shipment to arrive. Axel and Jenny break in and discover several bags of cocaine but are discovered by Maitland, Zack and Casey. Maitland takes Jenny and orders Axel killed before admitting to Mikey's murder. Billy rescues Axel after a brief gunfight during which he kills Casey.

To rescue Jenny, Taggart tracks Axel and Billy to Maitland's estate where they wipe out four of Maitland's men, including Zack. Axel kills Maitland with Bogomil's help. Bogomil fabricates an explanation for their unauthorized actions and agrees to smooth matters over with Inspector Todd, after Axel threatens to stay in Beverly Hills as a private investigator if Detroit fires him.