Marlon Wayans’ Five Favorite Films

This is one of my favorite movies ever, because of the writing. I’m a big Bill Murray fan, and I just think any comedy that can last over two hours and keep your attention, even though it was the same situation over and over, and get funnier every time — this is probably my favorite movie of all time.

This inspired me to want to write parodies and do parodies. I read it on the bed as a kid — I was eight years old when [his brother] Keenen [Wayans] sent me that script, and I [had] never laughed so hard. It inspired me. I knew that was what I wanted to do. It’s really my number one — I mean, I think it’s crazy if I put my brother as number one. You’d think I was being biased, of which I probably am, but I’m not, because I really love that movie and my brother. I think he’s a brilliant genius.

The scene with the volleyball when he [Ben Stiller] hit her in the nose and she started bleeding, that worst case scenario was one of the funniest things in the world. And I love Ben Stiller’s performance, he was so genuine, and all he wanted to do was be in the father’s good graces but he couldn’t help but [****] it up. That movie made me laugh from the inside out.

An African American filmmaker [Robert Townsend] and being Keenen’s little brother inspired me to want to do movies. It really told the whole truth about African-Americans in the struggle, in a funny way, without all of us banging on the door going, “Hey Hollywood, love us.” Through laughter, it erased color lines, and is one of my all time favorites. I love when you do a movie with people doing multiple characters. That’s something I do and love to do, and I find that it’s one of the hardest things to do and still be grounded as a regular person in a movie. I’m inspired to do movies like that in my next phase.

Eddie Murphy was so appropriate. Comedy is the magic of learning to be appropriate. In terms of his performance, he was so damn appropriate. He knew when to play what, and he let the situation lead him into being broad. Because of the situation, he did what he had to do, he was Bugs Bunny talking his way out of situations. That for me is another movie that I would like to do, it made me say, “Damn, I wanna do that.”