‘Coming 2 America’ Lands March 2021 Release on Amazon

Coming 2 America will set sail on Amazon Prime Video on March 5, 2021, both in the U.S. and more than 240 countries worldwide.

Amazon Studios revealed the release date early Friday when officially announcing it has closed a deal with Paramount Pictures acquiring worldwide rights to the comedy, which sees the return of Eddie Murphy in the iconic role of Prince Akeem.

The long-awaited sequel to the 1988 classic comedy is the latest Hollywood event pic bypassing a traditional theatrical release amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It originally had been set to hit the big screen in December.

Amazon Studios, led by Jennifer Salke, is aiming to move into traditional tentpole territory via such films as Coming 2 America or Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm.

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Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat 2, which debuted on Amazon last month, has been a boon for the streamer garnering column inches and becoming the talk on social media, although specific viewership numbers have not been revealed.

Amazon and Paramount haven’t commented on the terms of the deal, but sources say the purchase price for both films was in the $125 million range.

Coming 2 America sees Prince Akeem, now set to become king, discovering he has a son he never knew about, a street-savvy Queens native named Lavelle. Honoring his father’s dying wish to groom his son as a newly crowned prince, Akeem must once again return to America.

In addition to Murphy, original cast favorites from Coming to America include James Earl Jones, Shari Headley, John Amos and the motley barbershop crew. Newcomers include Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Jermaine Fowler, Bella Murphy, Rotimi, KiKi Layne, Nomzamo Mbatha and Teyana Taylor.

“Coming to America was a cultural phenomenon that is one of the most loved and celebrated comedies of all time,” Salke said in Friday’s statement.

Added producer Kevin Misher, “What could be better than a return to Zamunda?”