'Coming 2 America' Star Jermaine Fowler Based His New Show on His Parents' Lives

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PUBLISHED Mar. 5 2021, 1:52 p.m. ET

Jermaine Fowler
Source: Getty Images

If you aren't familiar with Jermaine Fowler's work, this multi-talented comic is taking 2021 by storm. Not only does he appear in two of the biggest films of the season — Coming 2 America and Judas and the Black Messiah — his comedic talents are not to miss. Now, Jermaine is creating and starring in an upcoming sitcom inspired by the lives of his parents

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Who are Jermaine Fowler's parents?

While on The Late Late Show with James Corden in 2015, Jermaine spoke about his family, most of the time as the butt of his jokes. Through the audience's laughter, fans learn that he is the second out of four children, a twin, and that his parents were teen parents when he was born. While this didn't always create the most stable living environment, he admits that his parents had a good sense of humor about the situation.

jermaine fowler standup
Source: Getty Images
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On Oct. 2, 2020, Variety announced that Jermaine was in talks with Fox to do an animated sitcom series loosely based upon his upbringing in Prince George's County, Maryland. Jermaine would serve as writer, director, and executive producer on the project, which is currently untitled. Jermaine has a lot of experience with animated comedy, having starred in Bojack Horseman earlier in his career. 

Although his childhood seemed idyllic, Jermaine's parents eventually separated. His mother, Martha, came out as a lesbian and has recently passed away. According to RepublicWorld.com, while the television show will not pick out specific stories from his childhood, the character Jermaine will be playing is inspired by his mother. 

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Source: Instagram

Jermaine said the original 'Coming to America' opened doors for him.

Eddie Murphy, the star of Coming 2 America and world-renown comedian, is cited as Jermaine's biggest influence. Jermaine said to Daily Beast that the original Coming to America meant a lot to his childhood self, and he even at one point recreated one of the scenes for his ringtone. 

Jermaine describes the movie as, "[A] Black fairy tale that’s taken as seriously as a white fairy tale. The movie opened the doors for me. It set a standard for Hollywood at a time that was lacking representation."

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Source: Instagram

Eventually, an executive at New Line Cinema put Jermaine in touch with a writer named Miles Murphy, who just so happens to be Eddie's son. One day, Miles invited Jermaine over to watch a fight on TV, and the rest is history! Jermaine struck up a friendship with his idol, bonding over Hollywood classics and comedy, and later received an invitation to audition for Coming 2 America

It sounds like Jermaine has an incredibly bright future ahead of him, with more new projects on the horizon, such as the drama film Am I Okay? and animated film Riverdance: The Animated Adventure. Fans will look forward to when more information is released regarding his animated sitcom, which we're certain will be both hilarious and touching. 

Coming 2 America is now available for streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime. 

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