How Amazon Primed Coming 2 America s Successful First Weekend
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As New York City cinemas scrambled to reopen across the country, Amazon Prime worked to build buzz in the lead up to “Coming 2 America’s” March 5 release.
Initially scheduled to be theatrically released by Paramount Pictures on Aug. 7, 2020, the highly anticipated sequel to the 1988 classic was pushed back to Dec. 18, 2020. The film was then sold to Amazon who released it on their streaming service on March 4, a day earlier than planned.
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The film sees Eddie Murphy reprise his role as Prince Akeem. As he ascends to the royal throne of Zamunda, he learns he has a son, Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler), living in Queens. Director Craig Brewer reunites much of the original cast and brings in new faces including Kiki Layne as Princess Meeka and Leslie Jones as Mary, Lavelle’s mother.
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New Movies to Watch This Week: Disney s Raya, Amy Poehler s Moxie and Eddie Murphy s Return
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It’s a very different landscape this week than it was a year ago, just before the pandemic forced cinemas to close around the country. Still, with New York cinemas cautiously reopening this week and many other markets determined to bring moviegoing back, the studios and indie distributors alike are bringing many of their long-delayed releases onto screens, albeit in an entirely new way.
For contrasting examples, look at how two of the majors are handling what were intended to be family film tentpoles: Paramount decided to bypass theaters entirely with “The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run,” using the title to launch its new subscription service, Paramount Plus (audiences can also rent it, at a price of $19.99, for a limited time via PVOD platforms). Disney tested a similar approach with
Coming 2 America s Jermaine Fowler on Eddie Murphy s Influence on His Comedy
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Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch in 2016, and he jokes he wasn’t a fan of lists until then. Since that time, Fowler has made a name for himself as the star and producer of the series “Superior Donuts,” and now he takes on his biggest role yet in “Coming 2 America,” the long-awaited sequel to the 1988 Eddie Murphy hit. In the new film, hitting Amazon Prime Video on March 5, Fowler plays Lavelle, the illegitimate son that King Akeem (Murphy) never knew existed. Lavelle and his mother (Leslie Jones) are plucked from Queens and transported to Zamunda, where his new royal life awaits.