The late James Earl Jones passed away on September 9, 2024 at the age of 93. He left behind an extensive artistic legacy and numerous acting awards. Jones began his professional acting career in the late 1950s, appearing on stage in Sunrise at Campobello and breaking into film in 1964 with Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. Jones continued to act on stage, television and film until 2021, making his final film appearance in Craig Brewer’s Coming 2 America.
Coming 2 America, the sequel to John Landis’ 1988 comedy Coming to America, is set in the fictional country of Zamunda, ruled by a wealthy but cantankerous king named Jaffe Joffer (Jones). The comedy begins with Zamunda’s prince, Akeem (Eddie Murphy), going to New York City to search for a potential bride. Akeem finds that the women of Zamunda are too enthralled by his fame and wants to find a wife who appreciates his character. In the sequel, Akeem returns to America to meet the son he never knew he was the father of.
In the opening scene of Coming 2 America, King Jaffe announces that he is about to die and that a funeral must be held. In a comical twist, the King insists on a funeral before he dies, wanting it to be a royal affair. The King appears in a coffin and laughs at the dancing and pageantry of his memorial service. Sadly, the King dies during the funeral. This was the last film Jones shot.
On the ReelBlend Podcast in 2021Brewer spoke about filming Coming 2 America, and how the actors had to be filmed mostly separately due to pandemic restrictions, which meant Jones, already in his 90s, had to film most of his scenes alone, with no direct interaction between him and Murphy. But the restrictions gave Brewer a rare opportunity: he got to work alongside one of the great actors of all time.
James Earl Jones’ final performance
While the majority of “Coming 2 America” was shot in Atlanta, Georgia, James Earl Jones lived in New York, forcing Craig Brewer to film his scenes separately. Jones, 90, can’t travel easily, especially with COVID-19 still rampant. Additionally, Jones has type 2 diabetes, which also made it difficult for him to travel easily. Brewer went to New York instead and filmed all of Jones’ scenes separately. Sadly, Eddie Murphy and co-star Arsenio Hall couldn’t work with the legendary actor, but Craig Brewer was able to read their lines and do a little bit of his own acting. He explained:
“James Earl Jones and Eddie and Arsenio were never in the same room together. I had to go to New York and shoot with James Earl Jones. I was Eddie and Arsenio all day. I was acting with James Earl Jones all day.”
Brewer admitted that he was deeply moved by working with Jones. Prior to this film, Jones had not worked for several years. His last Broadway appearance was in 2016, when he appeared in the play “The Gin Game.” On television, he appeared in two episodes of “Agent X” in 2015, an episode of “The Big Bang Theory,” and the 2005 TV movie “The Reading Room.” Through all of this, Jones continued to do a lot of voice acting work, reprising his famous roles as Mufasa and Darth Vader in “The Lion King” and “Star Wars,” respectively. Jones’ return in “Coming 2” was not lost on Brewer, who was thrilled by Jones’ performance and said:
“And the funeral. Every time I see the funeral scene I get emotional because I was with James Earl Jones that day and I saw him talking to Eddie. … But I couldn’t help it, because I grew up watching Star Wars and The Lion King and Claudine. So I remember him saying the lines to me – not to Eddie – but my lip was trembling and I got a lump in my throat and I couldn’t say cut.”
If Jones noticed Brewer’s lip trembling, he didn’t show it. He was professional to the end.
May James Earl Jones rest in peace.
