Eddie Murphy must have hurt Bill Cosby’s feelings.
A spokesman for the comedy veteran released a lengthy statement after Murphy made jokes at Cosby’s expense during his opening monologue on Saturday Night Live this past weekend.
The Dolemite Is My Name star took the stage as the show’s host after 35 years, by acknowledging the unexpectedness of it all returning to the 30 Rock stages.
“If you told me 30 years ago that I’d be this boring stay-at-home house dad and Bill Cosby would be in jail, even I would have took that bet,” Murphy said.
Cosby is serving three to 10 years in prison after being found guilty in April 2018 on three counts of aggravated indecent assault for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman at his home in 2004. Earlier this month, a Pennsylvania appeals court upheld the conviction.
“Who is America’s dad now?” Murphy added in his monologue, bringing to life his hilarious Cosby impersonation.
In a statement released Sunday, Cosby’s spokesman Andrew Wyatt criticized Murphy’s jokes, even calling him a “Hollywood slave.”
“It is sad that Mr. Murphy would take this glorious moment of returning to SNL and make disparaging remarks against Mr. Cosby,” the statement said. “One would think that Mr. Murphy was given his freedom to leave the plantation, so that he could make his own decisions; but he decided to sell himself back to being a Hollywood Slave.”
Wyatt’s statement then accused Murphy of perpetuating racial stereotypes by saying he was “cooning” and comparing him to Stepin Fetchit, the stage name of actor Lincoln Perry, who thrived in racist cliches with his work.
“Remember, Mr. Murphy, that Bill Cosby became legendary because he used comedy to humanize all races, religions and genders; but your attacking Mr. Cosby helps you embark on just becoming click bait,” Wyatt’s statement continued.
“Hopefully, you will be amenable to having a meeting of the minds conversation in order to discuss how we can use our collective platforms to enhance Black people rather than bringing all of us down together.”