Eddie Murphy is back and about to become king of Zamunda. Image: Amazon
Eddie Murphy ‘never planned’ to make ‘Coming 2 America’
Actor Eddie Murphy never intended to make a sequel to ‘Coming to America’ and only did it because of the original film’s cult following.
Eddie Murphy is back and about to become king of Zamunda. Image: Amazon
Eddie Murphy is set to reprise his role as Prince Akeem Joffer in the long-awaited follow-up to Coming to America. The actor, 59, revealed he had not intended to revisit the story had it not been for the 1988 film’s incredible cult following.
The original film was directed by John Landis and based on a story created by Eddie Murphy, who also starred in the lead role.
The actor, 59, told Extra: “We never planned on making a sequel to the movie. We had done the movie and it was in the past. But the movie stayed around. Of all the movies that I’ve done over the last 40 years, Coming to America is the only one that… has a cult following.
“And then, maybe around six, five years ago, I got an idea. Then it took four years for it to come together.”
Watch the trailer for ‘Coming 2 America’ here:
Eddie Murphy returns as Akeem
In the original film from more than 30 years ago, Murphy’s character travels to New York City from the fictional African nation of Zamunda to escape an arranged marriage and find an American wife.
The sequel sees Akeem about to become the king of Zamunda when he discovers a son in America named Lavelle (played by Jermaine Fowler) whom he knows nothing about.
Arsenio Hall is back as BFF Semmi
Arsenio Hall is returning as Semmi, Akeem’s best friend and aide, in the sequel. Hall admitted he felt under pressure about the new movie after reading social media comments from fans who had loved the original flick.
The 65-year-old star said: “I’m a big social media nut. Eddie’s not so much into social media. One day we’re sitting at his house, and I’m looking at something. I’m reading different stuff.
“I guess I said something like, ‘Wow’. He said, ‘What?’ It was somebody tweeting saying: ‘Don’t y’all f*** it up.’ I was like, ‘I never thought about it that way.’
“Here’s what I got out of the entire tweet: ‘That’s our movie. My daddy used to make us watch that once a year like The Wizard of Oz at the house. Don’t y’all f*** it up’.”
Coming 2 America will be out on Amazon Prime Video on 5 March.
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