Prince Akeem showed Murphy's range and solidified him as a comedy genius. The original Coming to America came out in 1988 and sort of felt out of nowhere. Murphy had the idea for an African prince coming to Queens to look for his bride, but that was it. At the time, he had a lucrative overall deal at Paramount, and the studio desperately wanted new movies for their budding star. But Murphy was known for his action comedies. 48 Hours, Beverly Hills Cop, and The Golden Child shot him to the top of the box office. As the decade was ending, Murphy wanted to solidify his place at the top. So he hired writers from SNL who had worked with him before, David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, and called upon Trading Places director John Landis, who had success doing Murphy's other non-action movie of the 1980s. The one hitch? The movie was set to release in six months with no footage shot, so they were really under the wire. This didn't bring out the best in everyone. Read More...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Tuesday, 9 March, 2021