'Coming 2 America' Was The Most Watched Streaming Movie On Opening Weekend Since The Pandemic Began...But Does That Really Mean Anything?

Coming 2 America was a sequel that was a long time coming — it was finally released more than 30 years after the original 1988 hit comedy. So it stands to reason that the long-awaited Coming to America sequel, which brings back Eddie Murphy and other original cast members, would have legions of nostalgic fans who would tune in when the film debuted on Amazon Prime Video last week. But even so, today's news that Coming 2 America had the biggest debut of any streaming movie in the past year? That's a bit hard to believe, but as is the case with all of these celebratory "ratings" stories, we have no actual numbers to back it up. So let's roll out the royal red carpet for the movie that reportedly scored the "No. 1 opening weekend of any streaming movie in the past 12 months."

Amazon Prime Video announced that Coming 2 America made several major streaming achievements on its opening weekend. It was the "#1 streamed movie of the weekend," as well as "the #1 opening weekend of any other streaming movie in 2021 thus far," and most impressively, the "#1 opening weekend of any streaming movie in the past 12 months," according to third party Screen Engine/ASI's weekly PostVODTM ranking.

Of course, these achievements should be met with a big handful of salt. As with all other big "streaming records" touted by Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, and the like, no concrete numbers or ratings are provided. And it's hard to imagine that Coming 2 America edged out the Disney+ debut of Hamilton, a streaming event that gave Disney's streaming platform a huge boost in subscribers. But with the 12,000 customer reviews that Coming 2 America received on Prime Video, and the stats that claim Amazon was the #1 downloaded app for Entertainment (on the App Store) and #2 downloaded app across all Free apps over the debut weekend, perhaps there could be something to these Coming 2 America viewing numbers.

Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios, said of the successful debut, "The Zamunda Royal family has arrived and audiences around the globe welcomed them enthusiastically! The premiere of Coming 2 America has far exceeded any of our wildest expectations. It's clear an entire new generation of fans have joined the enormous loyal fanbase who already adored the magical world created by global phenom Eddie Murphy, the incredibly talented filmmaking team and the hilarious, all-star cast of existing and newly-cemented legends. Coming 2 America is the perfectly fun, celebratory, escapist, feel-good comedy movie that worldwide audiences needed."Coming 2 America has also opened in theaters in Nigeria and South Africa, where the film is currently No. 1 in both countries, receiving the "biggest March opening for a film since Black Panther in 2018" in Nigeria, and the "highest opening for 2021 to date putting it currently at #1" in South Africa, per Amazon.Coming 2 America is streaming on Amazon Prime Video now.

Set in the lush and royal country of Zamunda, newly-crowned King Akeem (Eddie Murphy) and his trusted confidante Semmi (Arsenio Hall) embark on an all-new hilarious adventure that has them traversing the globe from their great African nation to the borough of Queens, New York – where it all began. Original cast favorites from Coming to America return including King Jaffe Joffer (James Earl Jones), Queen Lisa (Shari Headley), Cleo McDowell (John Amos), Maurice (Louie Anderson) and the motley barbershop crew. Joining this star-studded ensemble are Wesley Snipes, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Jermaine Fowler, Bella Murphy, Rotimi, KiKi Layne, Nomzamo Mbatha and Teyana Taylor, making Coming 2 America the most anticipated comedy film of the year.