John Amos is set to reprise the role of Cleo McDowell in the sequel to Eddie Murphy’s Coming To America.
It’s been over three decades since Prince Akeem, aka Murphy, last ventured to the US but he’s set to make a return in 2020 in the aptly titled sequel Coming 2 America.
The film will once again follow the story of the crown prince of Zamunda but rather than setting out on a search for his one true love this time he’s exploring the land of the free with the hope of finding his long lost son, a street-savvy Queens native named Lavelle.
According to Deadline, Amos is set to return alongside Murphy and other stars such as Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones and Paul Bates as they bring their characters back to life.
The 79-year-old plays the owner of McDowell’s, the fast food restaurant where Prince Akeem worked during his first venture to America. He is the father of Akeem’s love interest, Lisa McDowell, who was played by Shari Headley, though at the time of writing (August 11) there’s been no word as to whether Headley will be making a comeback.
As well as bringing a number of original cast members back together, Coming 2 America will introduce new characters played by Wesley Snipes, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones and KiKi Layne.
Akeem is set to become King of Zamunda when he discovers the son he never knew about is living in America and in order to honor his father’s dying wish to groom this son as the crowned prince, Akeem sets off to America with his trusty sidekick Semmi, played by Hall.
The sequel is directed by Craig Brewer, who worked with Murphy on the upcoming film Dolemite Is My Name.
According to Entertainment Weekly, Brewer spoke about the sequel and how he believes Akeem and Semmi will be welcomed back with open arms.
He said:
Every day we realise the legacy that we are playing with. It is both a joy and incredibly daunting.
There’s this moment that I always go back to: when we were screening Dolemite Is My Name… Eddie and Arsenio walked in and sat down in the second row, just like old friends do.
I could see everybody in the back’s eyes getting big and pointing down to both of them. In that moment of seeing Eddie and Arsenio sitting next to each other as friends, but also seeing the younger generation pointing at them and smiling, I remember saying to myself, ‘Yeah, I guess we need them right now, don’t we?’
The director went on:
I don’t want to sound too outrageous, but I think America needs Akeem and Semmi right now. I hope you know that’s sincere from me, that’s how I feel. We need them.
It will be interesting to see how Akeem adjusts to life in the US after his long absence!
Coming 2 America is set to be released on December 18, 2020.
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.