Coming 2 America, the sequel to the 1988 film Coming to America starring Eddie Murphy, premiered on Amazon Prime Video last week. And while the movie has received mixed reviews from critics, a lot of fans have enjoyed it so much that some of them have begun to wonder whether there will be a Coming to America 3.
Though there has been no official announcement about a third film yet, Murphy already has an idea for another Coming to America movie. “I’ve got an idea to do another one, but it doesn’t happen until I’m 75,” the actor said in an interview with Variety published in February.
Murphy reiterated this during his last week’s appearance on Live with Kelly and Ryan. When asked by host Ryan Seacrest if he’s working on a third Coming to America movie, Murphy replied: “There’s an idea for a Coming to America 3 that I have, but it doesn’t happen for 16 years. I have to be 75 to do it, and not make me up like 75 but really be 75.”
While Murphy didn’t reveal any additional details about his idea for a potential third film, the project would presumably see his character, King Akeem, having finally enacted the long-overdue social reforms in the Kingdom of Zamunda. And since the first two movies largely revolved around a royal drama, the third installment in the film series would probably center on a conflict surrounding Kiki Layne’s Princess Meeka, who is next in the line of succession.
Directed by Craig Brewer, Coming 2 America finds King Akeem ― along with his best friend and aide Semmi (Arsenio Hall) ― back in New York City after discovering he had fathered a child in America while visiting 30 years ago. To honor his royal father’s dying wish to groom this child as the new crown prince, King Akeem searches the entire city for his long-lost son and brings him to Zamunda.
Aside from Akeem, Hall, and Layne, Coming 2 America also stars Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Shari Headley, Teyana Taylor, James Earl Jones, and Wesley Snipes.
Coming 2 America was supposed to open in theaters through Paramount Pictures. But due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the film’s domestic distribution rights were sold to Amazon, which recently claimed that the film has had the most-watched streaming debut since theaters closed last March.