The upcoming 2023 holidays are already shaping up to be great.
Tracee Ellis Ross is joining Eddie Murphy in the holiday comedy Candy Cane Lane with Reginald Hudlin attached to direct the film for Prime Video. Kelly Younger penned the script, inspired by his own childhood holiday experiences. The project marks the first time Ross and Murphy will share the screen. The Amazon Studios-produced movie is currently filming in Los Angeles although plot and character details are under wraps.
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Candy Cane Lane will premiere on Prime Video in more than 240 countries, as the first film under Murphy’s three-picture and first-look film deal with Amazon Studios. That deal came on the heels of Coming 2 America, a film that moved from Paramount to Amazon during the pandemic and became the #1 streamed movie its opening weekend, per Amazon, and had the biggest streaming film opening weekend in 2021. Per Nielsen, it was the top streamed movie among Black audiences that year.
Murphy is producing alongside Imagine’s Brian Grazer and president of features Karen Lunder, and Charisse Hewitt-Webster. The film reunites the team behind the 1992 hit Boomerang. It marks the seventh collaboration between Grazer and Murphy. Plot details are being kept under wraps, and production will begin this winter in Los Angeles.
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Said Hudlin: “The holiday season is my favorite time of year—just ask my family about my nine-hour Christmas playlist. I‘m excited to be working again with Eddie Murphy, Brian Grazer, and Amazon.”
Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke added “As we know firsthand with our hit Coming 2 America, Eddie is someone who brings global audiences together, and we can’t wait to make it happen again. We look forward to seeing the multi-talented Reggie Hudlin take the helm in bringing this future holiday classic to life!”
Come back for more detail updates as we learn them.