Eddie Murphy to Star in First Scripted Series ‘The Chairman’ at Peacock

The Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning actor has been cast in The Chairman, a new drama series in development at Peacock by Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner.

While plot details have yet to be announced, the show will be produced by 101 Studios and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studios Group. The show also marked the first project between NBCUniversal, 101 Studios/CEO David Glasser (Mobland, Yellowstone and Landman) and their longtime collaborator Chris McCarthy as a part of his overall deal with NBCUniversal.

The Chairman will be Murphy’s first TV series regular role since NBC’s Saturday Night Live, which launched his comedy career. He served as a castmember on the sketch comedy series for four seasons from 1980 to 1984.

He later went on to star in dozens of films, including the Beverly Hills Cop franchise, 1996’s The Nutty Professor, 1998’s Doctor Dolittle, 2003’s The Haunted Mansion, 2003’s Daddy Day Care, 2008’s Meet Dave and 2023’s You People. Murphy’s also voiced multiple characters, such as Donkey in the Shrek franchise and Thurgoode Orenthal Stubbs in The PJs. In 2007, he was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actor for Dreamgirls.

As for Weiner, who has won nine Emmys, he previously served as the creator and showrunner on Mad Men, which ran for seven seasons from 2007 to 2015. He was also a writer and executive producer on The Sopranos. His other credits include The Romanoffs, Becker and Are You Here.