Norbit is a 2007 American comedy film, directed by Brian Robbins, and co-written by, co-produced by, and starring Eddie Murphy.

The film co-stars Thandie Newton, Terry Crews, Cuba Gooding Jr., Eddie Griffin, Katt Williams, Marlon Wayans, and Charlie Murphy.

Eddie Murphy portrays multiple roles including the eponymous Norbit and his abusive obese wife Rasputia.

In Boiling Springs, Tennessee, childhood friends Norbit Albert Rice and Kate Thomas live at an orphanage doubling as a Chinese restaurant called The Golden Wonton owned by Mr. Hangten Wong.

Five years later, a tough, overweight girl named Rasputia Latimore rescues Norbit from bullies, and eventually becomes his girlfriend.

Norbit is also belittled by Rasputia's three older brothers and henchmen Big Black Jack, Blue, and Earl, working as a bookkeeper at their construction company.

Deion plans to leave town, having no interest in the orphanage, but the Latimore brothers persuade him to help turn it into a strip club.

However, he finds a letter from the private investigator he hired, and discovers Deion has gained $300,000 in divorce settlements from four marriages in the last six years.

After the success of Shrek, DreamWorks co-founder and CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg signed up Eddie Murphy to star in a live-action followup, and they were looking for the right film.

Norbit seemed like a good fit, a production in line with his tradition of playing multiple characters in a comedy as Murphy had done before with Coming to America, Dr. Dolittle and The Nutty Professor.

[3] DreamWorks production president Adam Goodman brought the script to Brian Robbins and he was excited about the prospect of working with Eddie Murphy.

[4] Norbit was the first of three films where director Brian Robbins and Eddie Murphy worked together; the other two would be Meet Dave and A Thousand Words.

"[6] Rick Baker wanted to work from a real life model and auditioned over a hundred extra large ladies, all with the necessary proportions.

After several rounds of auditions, one lady was chosen as the life model for Rasputia and a foam latex suit was created based on her measurements.

Murphy with his face in makeup as Rasputia performed against green screen and his head was digitally composited onto the body double.

Club gave the film a grade of "F" and wrote: "It probably isn't possible for a single movie to reverse all social progress made since the civil-rights era, but Norbit, the latest broadside from Eddie Murphy, does its best to turn back the clock" and "hideously offensive black stereotypes are merely the tip of the iceberg.

"[18] Josh Tyler of CinemaBlend gave the movie a mostly negative review, in which he described parts of the film as "pretty despicable" and stated that "the plot relies on the idea that being fat also means you're a horrible bitch."

In regard to the "terrifying" character Rasputia, she went so far as to say that the film "tends to confirm one's worst suspicions about Murphy and what appears to be his general fear and loathing of women.

[22] Musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys called Norbit his favorite movie in a 2007 interview with the Asbury Park Press.

Nonetheless, Emerson pointed out several of the top grossing films of 2006 got both good reviews from critics and gained wide audiences.