Things are solidifying for the Coming to America sequel! Craig Brewer has signed on to direct Eddie Murphy for Paramount Pictures. Deadline officially broke the news Friday.

According to the outlet, Brewer has a relationship with Murphy. He’s just finished directing Murphy in the Rudy Ray Moore biopic Dolemite Is My Name, which led Brewer to get the directing spot for Coming to America 2.

Murphy issued a statement about the announcement, saying, “After many years of anticipation, I’m thrilled that Coming to America 2 is officially moving forward. We’ve assembled a great team that will be led by Craig Brewer, who just did an amazing job on Dolemite, and I’m looking forward to bringing all these classic and beloved characters back to the big screen.”

Kenya Barris, who is on board as the film’s scriptwriter, also praised Brewer’s directing ability. “From Hustle and Flow to his work with Eddie on Dolemite Is My Name, he never fails to blow me away,” he said in a statement. “He is a true auteur and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have him on board.”
In 2017, we originally wrote that Jonathan Levine would direct the sequel. There’s no word on why Levine has apparently left the project.

Brewer also announced his association with the project on his Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

“Good morning, my neighbors!”

A post shared by CRAIG BREWER (@mybrewtube) on Jan 11, 2019 at 12:30pm PST

Brewer has directed several staples in Black entertainment, including Empire and Hustle and Flow, both of which are starring Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson. Brewer also directed Black Snake Moan starring Samuel L. Jackson.

According to Deadline, the film’s official description involves Prince Akeem learning of a long-lost heir to the kingdom of Zamunda and must come back to America to meet him.

Along with Barris, the original Coming to America writers David Sheffield and Barry Blaustein are fleshing out the script. Murphy is also reprising his role as Prince Akeem. Barris will executive produce, and Murphy will act as a producer along with Kevin Misher.

The film’s team is also working on bringing back the rest of the original cast, including Arsenio Hall, Shari Headley, James Earl Jones and John Amos. An official production date hasn’t been released, but it could begin as early as this year.

READ MORE:

Paramount Officially Puts ‘Coming to America’ Sequel Into Development – But What Will the Story Be?

Kenya Barris tapped to write upcoming ‘Coming to America’ sequel, Eddie Murphy is involved and expected to star

Chris Brewer

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