Sumith Prasad
Eric “E” Murphy is the childhood friend and manager of Vincent Chase, also known as Vince and Vinnie, in HBO’s comedy-drama series ‘Entourage’ and its 2015 sequel film. He has been part of the Hollywood A-lister’s life since they were six. Eric also motivated his friend to become an actor when they were in third grade, making him one of the pivotal reasons behind the latter’s success as a star. Doug Ellin created the series loosely based on Mark Wahlberg and his entourage. Eric’s origin can be traced back to the same group. However, it does not mean that the character is completely based on a real person!
Eric “E” Murphy is Named After Mark Wahlberg’s Assistant
Doug Ellin modeled Eric “E” Murphy after two ever-present people in Mark Wahlberg’s life: Eric Weinstein, the personal assistant, and Stephen Levinson, the manager and producing partner. Like Eric, Weinstein is also known as “E” in real life. The character and the inspiration have the back of Vincent Chase and Wahlberg, respectively. “I don’t think I could go anywhere without him,” the actor told Vanity Fair about Weinstein. Like his fictionalized version, the assistant is deeply involved in the affairs of the two-time Academy Award nominee.
“The show shows how close we all are. I do construction; I’m the estate manager, travel agent, [and] I read scripts. It’s a team effort,” Weinstein told The New York Times. Having said that, the similarities between him and Eric in the show and its sequel more or less end here. “There is also an ‘E’ in Mark’s crew. But he really has almost nothing to do with our ‘E,’ except the name,” Ellin told WKYC. The differences between the two start with how they became part of the A-listers’ lives. While Eric has been Chase’s best friend since childhood, Weinstein met Wahlberg for the first time only after the latter became an actor.
Weinstein worked as a consultant in Wahlberg’s ‘The Basketball Diaries.’ Since then, he has been serving as the actor’s assistant. He even appears in some of the performer’s films, including ‘Father Stu,’ ‘Joe Bell,’ ‘Ted,’ ‘The Fighter,’ and ‘Four Brothers.’ He is also an associate producer of ‘Entourage’ and its sequel and a co-producer of ‘Father Stu.’ Furthermore, as Ellin made it clear, Erin’s tumultuous relationship with Sloan McQuewick is fictional. In real life, Weinstein is happily married to Shumaya Bang Weinstein, an actress and filmmaker.
Mark Wahlberg’s Manager, Stephen Levinson, Partially Inspired Eric “E” Murphy
Like Eric Murphy, Stephen Levinson, also known as “Lev,” is the manager of Mark Wahlberg. Unlike the series’ depiction, he was not the actor’s childhood friend. In the series, Vincent Chase brings Eric from New York City to Hollywood as part of his entourage. However, Wahlberg was not the reason Levinson became involved in the industry. They met while he worked for the talent agent David Schiff, whose clients included the actor. Their love for Steve McQueen’s ‘The Great Escape’ and ‘Papillon’ brought them together. Soon, Levinson started to see his new friend as the “kid who was going to be the biggest movie star in the world,” as per Vanity Fair.
Wahlberg became Levinson’s client when he formed Leverage Management with “a cardboard box and a phone,” like Eric in the show. The fictional manager has strong opinions about Chase’s career, similar to the inspiration behind him. When the real-life actor was confused about playing a pornstar in Paul Thomas Anderson’s ‘Boogie Nights,’ it was Levinson who convinced him to accept the part. His performance as Eddie Adams/Dirk Diggler in the period drama became a turning point in the star’s career. Since then, they have produced several films and TV shows together, including acclaimed projects such as ‘Boardwalk Empire’ and recent films like ‘The Family Plan’ and ‘Arthur the King.’
The heated conflicts between Eric and Chase’s agent, Ari Gold, are integral to the former’s arc in the HBO series. These conflicts are inspired by Levinson’s relationship with Wahlberg’s agent, Ari Emanuel, the CEO of Endeavor. “Ari tells everybody that Mark will do everything. Then I get the call, and then Mark eventually gets the call,” Levinson told The New York Times. The major difference between Eric and his inspiration is that the latter is also a producing partner of Wahlberg, making them equals. The real-life manager has an identity of his own as the creator of HBO’s sports series ‘Ballers,’ starring Dwayne Johnson.
Read More: Is Entourage’s Johnny “Drama” Chase Based on Mark Wahlberg’s Brother?
