Holy Man

Play trailer

Holy Man

PG

Released Oct 9, 1998

1h 54m

Comedy

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

12%

Tomatometer

50 Reviews

25%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Ricky Hayman (Jeff Goldblum), an executive at a home shopping network, is on the verge of losing his job. Sales are down under his leadership, and his boss wants to replace him with his rival, Kate Newell (Kelly Preston). But then Ricky meets an interesting man named G (Eddie Murphy). On a whim, he puts G on camera, and sales begin skyrocketing. But, when the job starts to take its toll on G's formerly enlightened demeanor, Ricky begins to question whether he has done the right thing.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Critics Consensus

Cloying and unfunny, Holy Man wastes the repartee between Eddie Murphy and Jeff Goldblum on the gospel of toothless satire and unearned sentimentality.

Read Critics Reviews

Lisa Schwarzbaum

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: D

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Lisa Alspector

Chicago Reader

It may not be earthshaking, but this calmly competent feel-good movie shows that a little sincerity can go a long way.

Jul 21, 2009

Full Review

Leonard Klady

Variety

The material lacks a biting edge.

Jul 1, 2009

Full Review

Richard Luck

Film4

Leaves you wondering whether there really is a God.

Rated: 1.5/5

Jul 21, 2009

Full Review

Maitland McDonagh

TV Guide

Good intentions abound, but we all know where they lead.

Rated: 2/4

Jul 21, 2009

Full Review

Betty Jo Tucker

ReelTalk Movie Reviews

A thought-provoking but uneven comedy.

May 16, 2009

Full Review

Read all reviews

Rosana B

Um filme de comédia-drama satírico, fracasso comercial e críticas negativas dos críticos, felizmente sou do contra e não achei tão ruim quanto imaginava, me senti muito na vibe do Eddie Murphy, cheia de mensagem subliminar, capitalismo vs bem-estar social vs saúde mental, tudo muito bonitinho, bobinho, mas fofinho e funciona como comédia leve e despretensiosa, e até nos tira alguma emoção no desfecho igualmente fofinho... Não é tão ruim, mas é muito ruim." By Eddie Murphy

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/30/24

Full Review

Audience Member

By no means one of Murphys best films but holy man brings the laughs.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/19/24

Full Review

Moppy

Funny and cheesy, inventive and heartwarming. the movie sets out to make you feel nice and does just that. not an awesome movie but a nice movie that you would be happy to watch on a monday evening before going to bed

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

What seems to try and put genuine heart turns into a mess of bad slapstick jokes and misplaced romantic comedy. Murphy trying to play a holy man seems to about the last person who would come off genuine...

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

robert p

It had potential to be more however considering the time of its original release I would say it was one of the better movies around that time, Eddie makes the film worth watching however his character was lacking more insight

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Gorgeous life lessons. Favorite characters. Feel good humor.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Stephen Herek

Director

Eddie Murphy

G

Jeff Goldblum

Ricky Hayman

Kelly Preston

Kate Newell

Robert Loggia

McBainbridge

Jon Cryer

Barry

Turner & Hooch

50%

51%

Turner & Hooch

Watchlist

Simon Birch

44%

77%

Simon Birch

Watchlist

Theodore Rex

0%

18%

Theodore Rex

Watchlist

The Truman Show

94%

89%

The Truman Show

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Truman Show

The Best Two Years

73%

92%

The Best Two Years

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Synopsis

Ricky Hayman (Jeff Goldblum), an executive at a home shopping network, is on the verge of losing his job. Sales are down under his leadership, and his boss wants to replace him with his rival, Kate Newell (Kelly Preston). But then Ricky meets an interesting man named G (Eddie Murphy). On a whim, he puts G on camera, and sales begin skyrocketing. But, when the job starts to take its toll on G's formerly enlightened demeanor, Ricky begins to question whether he has done the right thing.

Director: Stephen Herek
Producer: Stephen Herek, Roger Birnbaum
Screenwriter: Tom Schulman
Distributor: Touchstone Home Video, Buena Vista Pictures
Production Co: Eddie Murphy Productions, Touchstone Pictures, Caravan Pictures, Roger Birnbaum Productions
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 9, 1998, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 10, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $12.1M
Runtime: 1h 54m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now