Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall in Coming 2 America
It’s really impossible to overstate how huge a star Eddie Murphy was in the 1980s. At the beginning of the decade, he single-handedly saved Saturday Night Live after the original cast—and the audience—had moved on. He made his big-screen debut in 1982’s 48 Hours; two years later, he was so big he turned down Ghostbusters for Beverly Hills Cop, which became the highest grossing comedy in history.
In 1988, Murphy, by then fully in control of his career, made Coming to America. The big-budget comedy ($36 million, or $81 million in 2021 dollars) was based on a character he created, Prince Akeem Joffer, the scion of a fictional African country who bucks the tradition of arranged marriage and comes to Queens in search of a liberated American woman to be an equal partner. It was directed by John Landis, the pop cinema genius behind The Blues Brothers and the heady Murphy vehicle, Trading Places. Landis perfected the hangout movie, where plot was secondary to gags and character moments to help the audience identify with the movie star, and created worlds you want to live in. Modern superhero movies take a lot from Landis’ approach. The film was a huge success, earning the 2021 equivalent of $790 million.
Prince Akeem returns to Queens in Coming 2 America.
Eventually, Murphy, with no more worlds to conquer, lost interest in stardom and drifted off to raise his ten children. In 2019, Murphy mounted a comeback with the help of ace screenwriters Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski. Dolemite is My Name gave him the opportunity to play his idol, underground comedy legend Rudy Ray Moore. Directed by Memphian Craig Brewer, Dolemite was universally praised, and generated Oscar buzz. Most importantly, working with Brewer on material he cared about seemed to rejuvenate the reluctant superstar.
The Return of the King: Eddie Murphy’s Prince Akeem ascends to the throne in Coming 2 America.
Exactly why Coming to America became an enduring classic, and what that says about the culture, is too big a subject to tackle in a newspaper review. (Come to my TED Talk!) One clue can be found in Black Panther. The vision of Zamunda, Prince Akeem’s fully functioning, wealthy African nation state, owes a lot to the comic book Wakanda. Murphy and Brewer recognize this, and use the long-brewing sequel as an opportunity to throw a hangout party in the aspirational African paradise. Most of the original cast is back, first and foremost Arsenio Hall, whose turn as Semmi, Prince Akeem’s put-upon sidekick, made him a star. The Murphy-Hall comic duo drove Coming to America. They played multiple roles, all of which clicked perfectly. Coming 2 America takes those characters out for a victory lap. The wisecracking old guys in the barber shop are now very old, but still cutting heads. Hall’s Reverend Brown is still saving souls on discount in Queens, and he now has a Zamundan counterpart in a shaman named Baba. And you’ll be pleased to hear Murphy’s unknown soul sensation Randy Watson is still fronting Sexual Chocolate.
Murphy (right) in costume as the old Jewish guy in the barber shop.
Brewer’s filmmaking superpower is that he can get a good performance out of a fire plug. Coming 2 America is a star vehicle, but all Brewer films are ensemble works, because he pays equal attention to the bit players. As Queen Lisa, Shari Headley picks up with Murphy like they’ve been married for 30 years. John Amos, a TV legend from Good Times pours his heart into a scene with his regal son-in-law. James Earl Jones is magnificent as King Joffe, whose premature funeral provides the cameo-heavy, musical set piece — Brewer’s forte.
Teyana Taylor and Wesley Snipes in Coming 2 America.
First among the newcomers in the sprawling cast is Wesley Snipes, who steals the show every time he cakewalks into the palace as General Izzi, Akeem’s rival from the nation of Nexdoria. SNL alums Leslie Jones and Tracy Morgan practically ooze charisma as the new American cousins. Jermaine Fowler as Lavelle, the bastard son Akeem must retrieve from Queens, has the unenviable job of retracing Akeem’s arc from the original, choosing a romance with the peasant Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha) over an arranged marriage with Nexdorian princess Bopoto (Teyana Taylor).
Wesley Snipes, Jermaine Fowler, and Leslie Jones show off Ruth E. Carter’s costume design.
Brewer is not a comedy director, but armed with Ruth E. Carter, arguably the greatest working costume designer, and Empire shooter Joe Williams, he creates a lavish Zamundan background for his stars to bust out the schtick. Murphy mainstreamed raunchy Black comedy, but much of what passed for edgy in 1988 looks crassly sexist now, even in the context of the ostensibly feminist elements of the story. The sequel tries to strike a more inclusive tone by teaching Akeem the same lessons about the drawbacks of the patriarchy his father learned during the Reagan era.
Shari Headley, Arsenio Hall, and Eddie Murphy
Coming 2 America lacks the depth of Dolemite is My Name, but it never aspires to reach it. This is a pop confection whose only goal is to entertain as broadly as possible. Everyone from Murphy on down look like they’re having the time of their lives, and when you visit Zamunda, you may find their happiness infectious.
Coming 2 America is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
The Return of the King: Eddie Murphy Rules in Coming 2 America
