Film

Nutty Professor II: The Klumps

Name: Nutty Professor II: The Klumps
Genre: Comedy, Science Fiction
Released: 2000
Cast: Eddie Murphy, Janet Jackson, Larry Miller, John Ales, Richard Gant

Comedy
Light-hearted

Eddie Murphy plays virtually everyone in this loud, maximalist comedy sequel where a meek professor's obnoxious alter ego escapes and wreaks havoc. It's pure slapstick and character comedy, relying entirely on Murphy's physical transformations and voice work. For viewers who loved the first film's anarchic energy and don't mind broad humour stretched to its absolute limit.

TMDb rating

2.5

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love broad, sweet-natured family comedy where one performer slips into a whole rowdy household of characters and the physical gags land with real affection.

Skip it if you find the sequel's slapstick and prosthetic-heavy transformations wearing, or you want a comedy that trusts its jokes to be sharp rather than loud and repeated.

What it asks of you: Ninety-odd minutes of mostly bright, easy comedy, with little to think about beyond the next costume change and the next pratfall.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Nutty Professor1996

The original that established Murphy's gift for comedic transformation. Sweeter-natured than the sequel, with genuine warmth between Sherman and Denise that grounds the chaos. A perfect entry point if you've somehow missed it.

But The first film's charm relies on contrast; if Murphy's transformations don't delight you, there's not much else holding it together.

Coming to America1988

Murphy at peak charisma, playing multiple characters across a loose, joyful romance. It's got the same theatrical energy and love of costume comedy, but with sharper writing and a more engaging central relationship.

But It's 35 years old and some of the humour hasn't aged gracefully. The pacing meanders in places where it should snap.

Trading Places1983

Eddie Murphy's breakout role, and it's a perfectly constructed comedy about identity and class. Dan Aykroyd is superb, and the script crackles with wit beneath the chaos. Proof that broad comedy and smart writing aren't enemies.

But It's more 80s Wall Street satire than pure slapstick; if you're here for rubber-faced chaos, this feels restrained.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Nutty Professor II: The Klumps

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Big Momma's House2000

Both films from 2000, both about lone male comedians playing multiple characters, both unconcerned with plausibility—but Lawrence builds his comedy on aggression while Murphy's Klump is built on sweetness and vulnerability. Same tool, opposite registers.

Martin Lawrence in drag as a large, aggressive grandmother—releasing Klumps in the same year but with absolutely no interest in the science fiction premise. It's pure character comedy built on an actor's commitment to a bit, and Lawrence's physicality is fearless.

But It's coarse and deliberately stupid, with no romantic subplot to balance the chaos. The humour is almost entirely predicated on laughing at the appearance and behaviour.

The Mask1994

Jim Carrey doing what Murphy does here—playing an ordinary man freed by circumstance into absolute cartoon excess. Beautifully animated, genuinely inventive with its visual gags, and Carrey's energy is infectious.

But The CGI is dated and the plot is gossamer-thin. It exists to watch a man vibrate at high frequency for ninety minutes.

The Haunted Mansion2003

Eddie Murphy in a Disney haunted-house comedy where he plays it straighter and the supporting cast carries the film. Lighter touch than Klumps, but captures that same crowd-pleasing energy with better production values.

But It's more family film than adult comedy, and the humour softens accordingly. Feels like Murphy going through the motions in the early 2000s.

Norbit2007

Murphy again playing multiple characters in a wild-gender comedy romance. It commits fully to its premise and Thandie Newton is game for anything. The same theatrical excess, distilled into simpler storytelling.

But The premise relies on broad female stereotypes that haven't aged well, and the script has almost nothing to say about any of it.

Madea's Family Reunion2006

Tyler Perry as Madea, playing a character across an entire film with the same commitment Murphy brings to the Klumps. It's theatrical melodrama filtered through comedy—earnest and unafraid of emotion beneath the jokes.

But Perry's comedy often veers toward cringe, and the dramatic moments don't always earn the tonal shifts. It asks a lot of patience.

Meet the Fockers2004

Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, and Dustin Hoffman in a comedy about family embarrassment and performance. It's got the same energy of mortification played for laughs, but with a stronger script underneath.

But It's a celebrity vehicle coasting on charm, and the humour flattens over its runtime. Once you've seen the set-piece, you've seen the idea.

The Addams Family1991

Both films built entirely on the comedy of characters who look and behave abnormally. But where Klumps plays Sherman's weight as tragedy and comedy mixed together, Addams celebrates its family's otherness as absolute certainty. One asks you to pity and laugh; the other asks you only to celebrate.

Barry Sonnenfeld directing a comedy about an eccentric family that delights in its own strangeness, with perfect production design and a script that trusts the weirdness. It's theatrical and heightened but never winks at the camera.

But It's deliberately arch and gothic in a way that feels remote. If you want warmth or identification, it won't give it to you.