Who is Judge Reinhold in ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F?’

When Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F was first announced, Eddie Murphy’s return as the titular police lieutenant was the only name that stole the spotlight. But now that the teaser is out, Judge Reinhold is swiftly edging him out of the way.

But why on Earth is the 66-year-old Edward Ernest Reinhold Jr. called Judge Reinhold? I will answer that, but since he is going to share significant space in Netflix’s upcoming bid to revive the dormant franchise, let’s first get acquainted with his character.

What is Judge Reinhold’s character in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F?

Well, it’s the same character he has played in the last three films — Lt. William “Billy” Rosewood, the former partner of Sgt. John Taggart (John Ashton who is returning to the role after 35 years) at the Beverly Hills Police Department, as the latter retired in Beverly Hills Cop 2. Yes, in case you also gave up on the franchise, like Ronny Cox, or returned to it later like Ashton, you should know that Judge Reinhold is the only actor — apart from Murphy — who has dutifully reprised his role as the good, rule-following cop that first gets in Axel’s way, then is humiliated by the sneaky detective, before becoming one of his strongest and most loyal allies.

While even Murphy seemed a little concerned about Beverly Hills Cop’s continuing potential as a franchise, Reinhold was always optimistic — even when the Coming 2 America star shot down the original script for the fourth film decades ago and also for the 2013 television series that never made it past the gate on CBC.

So, are Billy, Taggart, and Axel still going to be thick as thieves in the upcoming sequel? If the recently released teaser is any proof — which recreates an iconic scene from past films — while there is no guessing the surprises or disappointments Beverly Hills Cop 4 hides, the three musketeers will be delivering them all together.

Now, I know, the usual curiosity…

Why is Reinhold “Judge” Reinhold?

When he was born in 1957, he was just Edward Reinhold. But his father, a lawyer, soon hilariously made notes of his stern expressions when he was just two weeks old, which reminded him of a tough judge he had to often interact with. “I looked a lot more like Winston Churchill than most babies,” Reinhold once recalled during an interview. So, while the family moved around, switching locations, the nickname stuck around.

When I say “stuck around,” it just simply doesn’t mean “Judge Reinhold” became his stage name. No sir, it became a popular name for characters as well, whether it was the judge (with the same name) in the 2000-aired episode of Clerks: The Animated Series voiced by Reinhold or the “Judge Reinhold” in Fanboys.