Entertainment
Eddie Murphy worried about ‘tainting’ Coming To America’s legacy with ‘bad’ sequel
Eddie Murphy rarely puts a foot wrong with his comedic genius but he admits having fears about ‘tainting’ Coming To America’s legacy by releasing a ‘bad’ sequel.
The comedian is reprising his iconic role as Akeem alongside Arsenio Hall (Semmi) and a host of new faces for Coming 2 America, set to debut on Amazon Prime in March.
It’s the sequel which longtime fans of Eddie have desired for three decades but the actor had a pretty solid reason for the lengthy wait.
Speaking to Essence magazine, he explained: ‘The one thing that I didn’t want to do was a bad sequel to a movie that a lot of people have a lot invested.
‘A lot of people grew up watching Coming To America. It’s special to them. So, you don’t want to taint that… Once the ideas started coming together, it took about four or five years to get the script all the way right.
‘Once we got it right, I knew it was time.’
Eddie, 59, spoke fondly of the lasting impact which Coming To America has had on fans, many of who still quote lines, such as ‘sexual chocolate’, from the film whenever they get the rare chance to bump into him.
He added: ‘The legacy of Coming To America is that it is unique, it’s rare. Black people, we don’t get a lot of movies like this one. Coming To America is a romantic fantasy comedy.
‘Usually, when we see ourselves on the screen, it’s heavy things…
‘Rarely do we get just to go see some escapism. Just to go see a movie and not have to think about any of that stuff.’
Coming 2 America will see Eddie return as the newly-crowned King Akeem Joffer, who’s heading back to Queens, New York, to honour his father’s dying wish for him to find his long lost son.
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The official trailer sees Akeem come face-to-face with his son for the first time – of course, while dressed in disguise as a full on tourist with his New York hat and badges and all.
The events of the sequel take place three decades on from the original movie that saw Akeem and Semmi head to New York after his 21st birthday on the lookout for love. They posed as foreign students as Akeem searched for his own bride, after his parents presented him with an arranged marriage.
Coming 2 America will see the return of its original stars James Earl Jones, Shari Headley, Cleo McDowell and Louise Anderson, as well as cast newcomers Tracy Morgan, Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones and Teyana Taylor.
Coming 2 America lands on Amazon Prime Video on March 5.
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