Detective Axel Foley is a fictional character, portrayed by Eddie Murphy, and is the titular protagonist of the Beverly Hills Cop film series. He is ranked 55 on Empire magazine's list of The 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. Sylvester Stallone was originally intended to be cast as Axel Foley. Beverly Hills Cop Detroit Police Department plainclothes detective Axel Foley is delighted when he receives a surprise visit from his best friend Mikey Tandino, who lives in Hollywood, California. Mikey is soon killed by a man named Zack. Foley goes to Beverly Hills, California, to find Mikey's assailant (since Mikey told Foley he had a job at an art gallery in Beverly Hills) where Beverly Hills Police Department Lieutenant Andrew Bogomil assigns Detective Billy Rosewood and Sergeant John Taggart to keep an eye on Foley. Foley visits his childhood friend Jenny Summers, who works at the art gallery. With Jenny's help, Foley discovers that Zack works for Jenny's boss, Victor Maitland, the man who owns the gallery. Maitland is a drug kingpin who is using the gallery as a front, and Maitland ordered Zack to kill Mikey after Maitland found Mikey had stolen some of his bonds. Billy, Taggart, and Foley head to Maitland's mansion to apprehend Maitland. Foley and Bogomil simultaneously shoot and kill Maitland. Beverly Hills Cop II Detroit cop Axel Foley is watching the news on TV when the reporter tells a story that Foley's friend, Beverly Hills Police Department Captain Andrew Bogomil, has been shot. Foley heads to Beverly Hills to visit Bogomil in the hospital, and is reunited with Bogomil's daughter, Jan, and Detective Billy Rosewood and Sergeant John Taggart. Rosewood and Taggart decide to let Foley help them find the woman who tried to kill Bogomil, even though verbally abusive police chief Harold Lutz has been trying to find a reason to fire Rosewood and Taggart, forcing the three to work covertly to avoid Lutz's interference. Foley, Rosewood, and Taggart soon discover that the Alphabet robberies, a series of robberies that have been going on in the area, are masterminded by weapons kingpin Maxwell Dent, who had sent his chief henchwoman Karla Fry to try to kill Bogomil because Bogomil had been after Dent. With this information, Foley, Rosewood, and Taggart try to find Dent and Karla. Beverly Hills Cop III One night in Detroit, during a shoot-out at a chop shop, Axel