Jimmy Kimmel Live gave Eddie Murphy a chance to plug his very serious movie and Gaten Matarazzo a chance to celebrate his new deep voice. The musical guest Schoolboy Q & E-40 performed at the end of the show and they were very reminiscent of The Beastie Boys in terms of sound.
Kimmel started the show off by having a chat with Gaten, who was backstage in the greenroom, on his Stranger Things walkie. (Afterward, Jimmy refers to the communication device as the new iPhone 7.)
A simple bit of comedy based on the amount of times “over” could be used over and over again. One of the reason’s Kimmel’s show is a personal favorite, as well as the gags and pranks the host pulls on the unsuspecting.
The monologue was cut short this week, although there was time to make fun of Donald Trump. “Drunk Donald Trump” pre-empted the Judge James segment. The verdict on this “Judge Judy” parody is mixed. Amusing but not overly funny, this felt like filler although Kimmel pulled off his joke well.
(The visual site of Jimmy coming on with either no trousers – or he was wearing shorts- under the judge’s robe was missed by the studio audience apparently.)
Murphy and Kimmel discussed their favorite series of all time Good Times. For those too young to remember, this was the series that made Jimmy Walker a runaway star (pun intended) and frustrated John Amos so much that he left the show to work on Roots.
The two men spoke about the prom, Murphy did not go to his but did attend his girlfriend’s. The performer also admitted that he does not pack his own bags when traveling.
He and Jimmy talked about kids, vasectomies and his start in comedy. Murphy revealed that he owes his start to the 1976 talent show The Gong Show.
Murphy’s new film Mr. Church and the performer plays against type. The drama opens September 16 and there was a clip from the film. Here is a trailer for the film:
Murphy and Kimmel finished talking about the possibility of Eddie doing stand-up again. Murphy also did an excellent impression of Tracy Morgan with his “ballpark franks.” (Very funny.)
Next up was Matarazzo, now 14 years old and what a difference a birthday makes. Last week Gaten was on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon and he was all over the place. On this episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live, Gaten was quite controlled.
He talked about what happened on his birthday (a Santa Monica Pier visit) and his lack of excitement over presents. Jimmy congratulated Gaten on reaching puberty and claimed that the young actor would have mustache in season two.
They talked about raises, which Matarazzo did not ask for, and how he manages his money. Gaten replied that he had no idea. Jimmy then asked him how he got, for instance, a skateboard.
Gaten: “I ask my mom, ‘Can I have a skateboard’ and she says no.”
This calmer version of Gaten Matarazzo was a delight. On other talkshows he has been a bit overexcited. Either his newly developed hormones have calmed him down or, more likely, this celebrity thing is becoming more commonplace for the Stranger Things star.
At the end of the show, Kimmel apologized, again, to Matt Damon for running out of time. Schoolboy Q & E-40 performed and high energy song that was a crowd pleaser.
Jimmy Kimmel Live airs Monday through Friday on ABC.
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