Eddie Murphy Played Street Game Where Kids Whip Each Other With Belt

Comedian Eddie Murphy told Jimmy Kimmel Thursday that he used to play a game called “Hot Peas and Butter” on the streets as a kid in Brooklyn.

But the game isn’t food-based. It’s a rather tough variation of Hot and Cold, in which someone hides a belt and lets the other players know if they’re getting hotter as they get closer to it. When someone does locate the belt, everyone yells “hot peas and butter” and must run back to a base or get whipped by the belt, Murphy explained.

Kimmel, a Brooklyn native who had hadn’t heard of the pastime, quipped: “Now I know why we didn’t play.”

“A very violent street game,” Murphy said, smiling.

The 58-year-old father of 10 explained the rules further, prompting Kimmel to joke: “Now that would be on the news if you did something like that.”

Watch the “Dolemite Is My Name” star elaborate on the game, his new movie (out Friday on Netflix) and his return to stand-up, above.