'Coming To America' Star Louie Anderson Dead At 68
Louie Anderson, who appeared in 1988’s Coming to America and 2021’s Coming 2 America, has passed away at 68 years old.
According to Variety, the Emmy winner died Friday (Jan. 21) in Las Vegas after battling cancer. On Jan. 18, WNBC reported he was fighting a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Anderson’s career began in 1984 when he got his big break performing comedy on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. However, one of his most memorable roles will always be McDowell's employee Maurice in Coming to America, which he reprised in the 2021 sequel.
A loyal McDowell's employee, in the original film, Maurice finally gets upgraded to manager at the restaurant’s Zamunda location. He predicted his rise in the company when he told new employees Akeem (Eddie Murphy) and Semi (Arsenio Hall) saying, “I started out mopping the floor just like you guys, but now, now I'm washing lettuce. Soon I'll be on fries; then the grill. In a year or two, I'll make assistant manager, and that's when the big bucks start rolling in!”
The line inspired a bar in Kanye West’s “Gold Digger” and Anderson continued to make fans chuckle when he appeared briefly in the 2021 sequel.
Anderson as Maurice popped up again in the Lena Waithe-created BET series Twenties, which is his last credited acting role.
Louie Anderson is survived by his two sisters, Lisa and Shanna Anderson.
Anderson is being remembered by Hollywood, including Lena Waithe. See the reactions below.
