Craig Brewer To Direct Eddie Murphy In ‘Coming To America 2’ For Paramount
EXCLUSIVE:
Paramount Pictures is setting Craig Brewer to direct
Coming To America 2, finally
bringing to the starting gate the sequel to the 1988 blockbuster comedy.
Eddie Murphy is poised to reprise his role as Akeem, the pampered
African prince who became bored of potential marriage partners in the kingdom
too in awe of him, and who traveled to Queens to go undercover and find a woman
with a strong will that he could respect. Brewer just directed Murphy in Dolemite Is My Name, and the star was
eager to work with him again. The female empowerment theme of the original
seems timely in today’s climate.
There is no start date, but the hope is that
production begins in 2019.
In the sequel, Akeem learns about a long lost
son, and must return to America to meet his unlikely heir to the throne of
Zamunda. The intention is to bring back the original cast which includes Arsenio Hall, who played the prince’s aide Semmi,
Shari Headley, who was courted by the prince when he went undercover as a
fast food worker,
John Amos, who played her father, and
James Earl Jones, who played the king.
“After many years of anticipation, I’m
thrilled that Coming to
America 2 is officially moving forward,” Murphy said in a
statement. “We’ve assembled a great team that will be led by Craig Brewer, who
just did an amazing job on Dolemite,
and I’m looking forward to bringing all these classic and beloved characters
back to the big screen.”
Said Kenya Barris: “Craig’s ability to create
a distinct cinematic world with each of his films is not only impressive, but
also what made him exactly the voice and vision we needed to bring this story
to life. From Hustle and Flow to his work with Eddie onDolemite Is My Name, he never fails to blow me away. He is
a true auteur and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have him on board.”
My Name Is Dolemite is wrapped, with script by Scott Alexander &
Larry Karaszewski, and Murphy playing the self-made blaxploitation film star
alongside Wesley Snipes, Keegan-Michael Key, Chris Rock, Craig Robinson and
T.I. The picture will be released by Netflix.
Brewer is
repped by WME and attorney Carlos Goodman, and Murphy is WME, ML Management and
Ziffren Brittenham’s Matt Johnson and Skip Brittenham; Barris is CAA, Artists
First and attorney Gregg Gellman.
