Bill Murray Reveals Why He Avoids Comedies These Days In GQ Profile

In the latest issue of GQ, Bill Murray is profiled, and he explained why he rarely acts in straight comedy films, like the ones that made him famous in the '80s and '90s.

The answer is simple: He doesn't find the scripts he's offered to be funny.

GQ's Brett Martin, who interviewed Murray over coffee, explains:

And yet, for the past decade, the one area Murray has failed to find an assured place is in comedies that announce themselves as comedies. When I ask why, he's silent for a full fifteen seconds. "They're different," he says finally. "They're just different from what I used to do."

Since the late '90s, Murray has mostly limited himself to acting in dramatic movies, often directed by Wes Anderson. The rare exceptions are the Garfield movies, which he claims he accepted due to a misunderstanding, and "Zombieland," of which he told GQ that he was proud to have been a part. Murray is also considered an awards season favorite for his turn as Franklin Delano Roosevelt in "Hyde Park on the Hudson."

But Murray is not ruling out returning to more traditionally funny movies:

"I know that if I ever feel that I need to make a funny movie, I'll figure out how to write one. I'll get it done. If I ever get some ambition, I'm gonna get some shit done."

Instead of acting in funny movies, Murray seems content with "life-bombing" shenanigans, such as crashing a kickball game on Roosevelt Island earlier this year.

Click over to GQ to read the rest of Martin's Bill Murray profile.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post erroneously stated that the kickball game that Murray crashed was in Brooklyn.