Bella Murphy reveals strict rule Eddie Murphy set for her acting career

Bella Murphy has revealed the strict rule her father, Eddie Murphy, enforced during her upbringing, saying it ultimately shaped her approach to her acting career.

The 24-year-old actress, who is currently starring in Netflix’s Roommates, shared that Eddie Murphy prohibited his children from pursuing professional acting until they turned 18, a decision she now credits for helping her build a stronger foundation in the industry.

“I would always ask my dad, ‘Can I please be an extra in this movie, please?’ He’d always say, ‘No,’” she said in a recent interview. 

“Because we have a rule that we can’t act or work until we’re 18 in this industry, so he really wanted me to have a normal childhood, which I’m very appreciative of.”

While the rule initially frustrated her, Murphy said it eventually motivated her to take acting more seriously, using school plays and drama camps to refine her skills before stepping into Hollywood professionally.

“That kind of made me even more obsessed with it,” she explained. “By the time that I am able to do it, I want to be as prepared as possible.”

Murphy also credited visiting her father on film sets as a major influence on her career path, saying those experiences sparked her fascination with filmmaking and performance from an early age.

“I was like, ‘It’s the coolest job ever. I want to do that,’” she said.

She added that her older sister, Bria Murphy, also played a role in inspiring her to pursue acting, joking that she initially followed her sister’s interests before discovering her own passion.

Now, Murphy is stepping into her breakout moment with Netflix’s Roommates, where she stars alongside Sadie Sandler and Chloe East in a story about college friendships and the complications of shared living.

Her character, Amber, lives down the hall from the main group and navigates her own roommate challenges, reflecting the film’s broader themes of friendship, identity, and young adulthood.

Murphy said the opportunity felt especially meaningful, as it came during a moment when she was actively building confidence in her craft.

“Night and day,” she said of her growth. “To really trust myself more.”

The actress added that working on Roommates reinforced a key personal lesson: stepping back from self-doubt and allowing herself to grow into her own path in Hollywood.

Roommates is now streaming on Netflix.