Eddie Murphy’s highly anticipated Coming to America sequel, officially titled Coming 2 America, will release on streaming rather than in theaters this December. Paramount was originally set to release the film during the traditionally busy Christmas movie season.
Unfortunately, as has been the case for a growing list of upcoming films, the COVID-19 pandemic has made the theatrical release model a highly problematic undertaking. Again and again over the past several months since the pandemic took hold, cinemas around the world have either been forced to close or stand by helplessly as audiences failed to turn up in significant numbers. Many industry insiders had predicted that a slate of upcoming big name, big budget releases would turn things around for theater owners and studios alike, but as more time passes, this proves to be an unlikely prospect. Coming 2 America was one such film, as the original 1989 fish-out-of-water comedy starring Murphy and Arsenio Hall had pulled in nearly $300 million during its original theatrical run. The sequel has been in the works for several years and fans have been extremely eager to see what’s in store for them.
According to recent reports from Deadline and Variety, however, Paramount has sold Coming 2 America to Amazon Studios. The deal is reportedly still being finalized as of this writing, but the sale is said to carry a hefty $125 million price tag. As a result, Coming 2 America is expected to premiere December 18 on Amazon Prime. The film joins a list of other impressive titles that Amazon has managed to claim as of late, including Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat sequel, as well as the Tom Clancy adaptation Without Remorse.
For fans who were eager to see Coming 2 America but weren’t looking forward to having to head to the cinema to do so, the streaming option is ideal. For theater owners, however, it’s yet another nail in a coffin that is almost set to be buried. With no end in sight to the pandemic, exactly how or when cinemas are going to be able to get back on their feet again is unknown. Having missed out on the summer blockbuster season, the impact of also losing ground on holiday releases is a continued recipe for disaster. At the same turn, as unfortunate as the situation is, it simply can’t be helped. Studios are becoming increasingly aware that the best release model for the foreseeable future is streaming, and while cinemas have previously struggled with this reality, nothing has prepared them for the major sea change that the pandemic has brought. Films like Coming 2 America can hardly be expected to sacrifice box office returns in order to try and keep cinemas on their feet.
It’s also important to recognize that even if a potential hit film like Coming 2 America had decided to release theatrically for the sake of helping out cinemas, previous attempts by other films at doing the same haven’t worked. There doesn’t currently appear be any way to ensure that seats are filled. Because of this, it does not look as though cinemas are going to be able to survive this prolonged loss of audiences. Meanwhile, the streaming market continues to grow, now with Coming 2 America, leaving the entire film industry in an unprecedented state of massive change.
Source: Deadline and Variety
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