Eddie Murphy does not need your sympathy!

In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, the comedic legend revealed that he quietly left the 2007 Academy Awards after losing the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for “Dreamgirls,” not because he was angry (as headlines reported), but because he didn’t want to be turned into “the sympathy guy.”

Murphy said he anticipated Alan Arkin’s win and wanted to avoid awkward sympathy from colleagues. "What happened was I was at the Oscars, I had lost, and then people kept coming over to me and kept [patting] me on the shoulder. Clint Eastwood came and rubbed my shoulder. And I was like, ‘Oh, no, no, I'm not gonna be this guy all night. Let's just leave.’ I didn't storm out. I was like, ‘I'm not gonna be the sympathy guy all night.’"

The Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination was Murphy’s first. The category was fully stacked with fellow legends: Alan Arkin for “Little Miss Sunshine,” Jackie Earle Haley for “Little Children,” Djimon Hounsou for “Blood Diamond,” and Mark Wahlberg for "The Departed.” When Murphy left shortly after Arkin’s win, missing his co-star Jennifer Hudson winning her first Oscar for Best Supporting Actress and the performance of “Dreamgirls’” three Best Original Songs, whispers about him being upset swirled.

Murphy recalled the time Jeff Katzenberg invited him over to see “Little Miss Sunshine” six months before it came out in the theaters, and he was blown away by Arkin’s performance. He said, “I hadn't been nominated or anything yet — and I watched the movie, and I turned to Jeff afterwards, and I said, 'Now that performance right there is one of those performances that will steal somebody's Oscar.’ I said those exact words. I was like, 'He could steal somebody's Oscar,' then he stole mine." He laughed and added, “No, I don't feel like he stole mine.” 

Murphy also reflected on the strange logistics of awards seasons, noting that victories hinge on more than performance alone. There’s lobbying, industry perception, and timing, which all play critical roles in who gets what trophy. He understands the game. 

"The mindf--- for me is that I get dressed and come to the thing, 'cause I would usually not go to award shows," he said in his “Being Eddie” documentary. "Whenever I lose, I'm like, These motherf---ers made me come all the way down. I could have f---ing lost at home. I'm all in the f---ing tuxedo. What a waste of time."

While presenting Best Picture at the 1988 Oscars, Murphy boldly stood 10 toes down and said, "I'll probably never win an Oscar for saying this, but hey, what the hey, I gotta say it,” before going into a speech about the lack of Black nominees and that only three Black actors had won in the Oscar’s 60-year history at the time (Hattie McDaniel, Sidney Poitier, and Louis Gossett Jr.) He continued, "I just want you to know I'm gonna give this award, but Black people will not ride the caboose of society, and we will not bring up the rear anymore. And I want you to recognize us."