When I was 13, Eddie Murphy was to me what Chris Tucker was to 13-year-olds when I made 'Rush Hour.' And 'Rush Hour' really came out of the fact that I grew up watching 'Beverly Hills Cop' and '48 Hrs.'

At the end of the day, audiences just want to laugh and be entertained. They want to escape from their reality, and that's why we make movies, to get people to escape from the realities.

I'm not going to turn down an Oscar, but I'm not strategizing for one.

I never dreamed I would be producing the Oscars. That was a huge deal for me.

You've got to think about how to do things for the right price. You have to shoot in different places to be creative and get tax rebates.

Michael Jackson doesn't really belong on this planet. He's the most important figure in the history of music. He'll be remembered far longer than George Bush will. 200 years from now, people will be talking about Michael Jackson, and no one's going to mention George Bush.

Everyone who knows me knows that I don't have a prejudiced bone in my body.