In the new movie “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F,” Taylour Paige plays Jane Foley, Eddie Murphy’s daughter. But the 33-year-old actress grew up idolizing a different Murphy-helmed film franchise.
“‘The Nutty Professor’ — I probably watched that movie like 200 times on VHS as a kid,” she said.
“I recited every line to him almost every day I shot with him,” added Paige, who previously starred in the 2021 movie “Zola” as the title character. “I had a lot of questions, like, ‘How do you play six to eight people believably?’”
Paige, who lives in Miami, was calling from Toronto, where she was filming the “It” prequel series “Welcome to Derry.” It’s another franchise to which she wasn’t previously attuned — she hadn’t seen any Pennywise films, nor had she read Stephen King’s 1986 novel that started it all. “I’m a scaredy cat,” she said.
While she might not be up on clown-based horror, she lives for soaking up knowledge of vintage cinema, Gnosticism and Jungian psychology. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.
1
Magnesium Tablets
I find magnesium really helpful when I have to travel, or I’m jet lagged, or I have to be on set early and need to go to bed and I’m in a completely different time zone. It also helps dial up my digestion, and it regulates the nervous system.
2
Walks
I’m very grateful to have legs and to be able to walk, and I don’t say this lightly. I walk everyday, three to five miles. I find it inspiring. You can observe and take in and exist. I’ll listen to music or, right now, I’m listening to the Gnostic scriptures. I have dogs (Aretha, a pit bull, Baba Joo, a Chiweenie and Juice, a pit bull-bulldog) which compel me to walk, but I also love taking a simple hand-in-hand stroll with my husband.
3
Some YouTube, Some Criterion
YouTube is my favorite social technology. I can watch a whole class on Beethoven, listen to accents or learn about color therapy. At the same rate, I love films, so I love the Criterion Collection. It’s so thoughtful and curated. There’s often a lot of interviews that aren’t on YouTube. Like I can watch an Ingmar Bergman interview explaining how he made “Autumn Sonata.”
4
Notebooks
I can’t go a day without my notebook. I don’t really love Google calendars and things like that. I really like the tangible feeling of writing and reminding myself, pressing things out and taking notes. I like them to be kind of big so I can write, scribble and not be perfect about it (as a recovering perfectionist).
5
Castor Oil and Heating Pads
I recently had endometriosis surgery and it’s been integral in healing. Put the castor oil on your belly, then you put the heating pad on top. It’s a soothing, simple thing to do as I read. You do it for 30 minutes to an hour.
6
Hourglass Mascara
I’m vain and this mascara is truly the best I’ve ever tried. It’s the only makeup I wear daily. It goes on easily, your lashes look amazing, and it comes off easily. When you take it off, you don’t look like a raccoon or like someone punched you in the eye.
7
My Dental Regimen
I don’t feel ready to start the day without my floss and tongue scraper. And I use this toothpaste that I love from Switzerland, Of Course I Still Luv You. I’m particular about feeling clean and taking care of my teeth. I like it to let go of the day and then to begin a new one. It’s like a fresh palate.
8
Glass Water Bottles
No more plastic. It’s not good for the environment. It’s not good for you. I’ve tried to become more conscious of things that take longer to make. Glass is harder to make than plastic — it’s a bit of a longer process. It’s nice to honor things that are slower. It’s better for our precious Earth.
9
Gold Hoops
There’s these hoops I wear all the time, from this magnificent store in L.A., XIV Karats. They barely weigh anything, they’re cute and classy. My friend’s mom, who had impeccable taste, recently passed away, and she’d asked me where I got them. It was cool to me that she noticed them, so every time I pop them on, I think fondly of her.
10
ThriftBooks
I find most of my books there. I’m reading this book I got there, “The Dud Avocado,” about this American girl living in Paris, and this Nora Ephron book, “I Feel Bad About My Neck.” I’m very A.D.H.D., so I read a lot of things at once. I just ordered 10 and they all came to $70. Of the 10, I’m excited to read “Answer to Job” by Carl Jung. I love him — his whole thing is we’re here to make the unconscious conscious.