Arsenio Hall Officially On-Board For ‘Coming To America 2’ With Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall are together again!
Arsenio Hall has officially closed his deal to return for Coming to America 2, according to Deadline.com. The actor was heavily rumored to star in the film, especially after he was pictured a few months back with Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter, who won an Oscar earlier this year for her work on Black Panther.
Most of the principal cast members from the original film, including Murphy, Hall, Shari Headley, and James Earl Jones were expected to return. Murphy and Hall are the only two with officially-confirmed deals.
Coming to America was released on June 26, 1988, and follows an extremely pampered African prince (Murphy) who travels to Queens, New York, and goes undercover to find a wife that he can respect for her intelligence and will.
As of now, Jermaine Fowler is the only new cast member that has been set. If previous reports are proven to be true, Fowler is one of two young leads (one male and one female) that will be at the focal point of the film. In April it was said that the two leads were LaVelle and Meeka, the heirs both vying for the Zamundan throne.
Fowler is likely playing the character known right now to be “LaVelle,” described as a 30-year-old Queens hustler with a heart of gold. Raised by his mother, LaVelle wants a better life for himself, which could be right around the corner as he learns that he’s the possible Zamundan heir. LaVelle “has the gift of gab, able to crack wise with humor, but is by no means a clown” and he “struggles with discipline, authority, and self-motivation.”
Meeka, on the other hand, is the 20-year-old “proud and principled daughter of Zamunda” who is “athletic and skilled in the art of self-defense, but she is also measured in her temperament, always seeking a calm, diplomatic solution to conflict.” Meeka is beautiful and capable, but still holds anxiety over “wanting to be the son Akeem never had.” Her challenge is to show her father her true self and “be brave with her heart.”
The script is by Kenya Barris (rewritten from the original film’s writers, Barry Blaustein and David Sheffield) and directed by Craig Brewer. The film will be in theaters Aug. 7, 2020.
Photo Credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images