Coming 2 America (2021)

33 years after the original comedy classic Coming to America (1988) hit theaters, the times have certainly changed as the long overdue sequel Coming 2 America (2021) made its debut on Amazon Prime in March, 2021! Eddie Murphy is back as Akeem, the former prince and now king of Zamunda, whose reign over the last few decades has been rather uneventful. All of that changes when he gets word that on his original trip to America in the late 80s, Akeem knocked up a woman named Mary (Leslie Jones) during an ill-advised one night stand early in his journey. Hoping to build a relationship with his long-lost son Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler), Akeem and his faithful friend Semmi (Arsenio Hall) are headed back to America. In the spirit of the original, Murphy and Hall both play multiple characters, reprising such favorites as the barber shop guys and, of course, the man you might know better as Joe the Policeman from the "What's Goin' Down" episode of That's My Mama, Jackson Heights OWN Mr. Randy Watson, lead singer of Sexual Chocolate! As far as victory lap sequels go, this is one of the above average efforts, with a star-studded cast adding all sorts of prestige to the film! The one bummer is that the original's R rating has been ditched in favor of the more family friendly PG-13. Actress and musician Teyana Taylor does give some great cleavage in an elaborate musical number in the palace, mirroring the one from the original, but otherwise we're sad to say, there won't be much Coming to Coming 2 America!