Amazon Video/Quantrell D. Colbert(LOS ANGELES) — Eddie Murphy may be an actor, but he is a father, first and foremost. So, when working alongside daughter Bella Murphy in the comedy Coming 2 America, those two careers collided during a rather intense fight scene.
The father-daughter duo opened up to Entertainment Tonight on Monday about the sequel movie, of which Eddie reprises his role of Prince Akeem. Bella plays his daughter, Omma.
For Bella, the movie was her first acting gig and she felt the pressure to prove she landed the role not because of nepotism, but because she had the best audition.
“I was very nervous,” the 19-year-old admitted. “I didn’t want people to watch it and be like, ‘Oh, that’s his daughter because she can’t keep up with everyone,’ you know?”
That mentality, she admits, made her go a little too hard during a particular fight scene that she shot with her dad.
“I wanted my performance to be really good and I wanted to go in and do the best that I could,” she confessed. “I came down with my bow staff and I was supposed to whack my dad and he was, like, blocking, but the way I came down was way too close to his knuckles.”
“I saw his life flash before his eyes,” added Bella, saying the mishap caused director Craig Brewer to stop the scene.
Meanwhile, Eddie jokingly told his little girl, “You’re grounded!”
The Oscar-nominee added that he is proud of his daughter’s movie debut.
“I told her that she couldn’t work until she was 18,” he explained, saying he allowed he to audition because she was the right age for the part. “So she auditioned for it and got the part.”
Coming 2 America premieres March 5 on Amazon Prime.
By Megan Stone
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