Wesley Snipes' Coming 2 America role cleverly builds upon a joke in the original movie. In the Amazon Prime sequel, he portrays the leader of Nexdoria, General Izzi, who desperately wants to make a marriage pact with Eddie Murphy's Akeem Joffer. The character's first appearance not only explains his motivations, but also sets up a character reprisal from Vanessa Bell Calloway - the general's barking sister and the Queen-to-Be from Coming to America.
In Coming to America, Calloway's Imani Izzi is part of the film's inciting incident. She and Prince Akeem are arranged to be married by their respective families, however Murphy's character discovers that Imani doesn't show any autonomy, or a willingness to be anybody except the Prince's obedient wife. Akeem realizes that Imani has essentially been trained like a dog, and when she agrees to actually bark like a dog and hop on one leg, he reaches an important life epiphany and heads off to New York City, specifically Queens, in search of a suitable wife.
Coming 2 America reveals that Snipes' General Izzi is none other than Imani's brother. When he first appears in the sequel, he receives a grandiose entrance - one that thematically references the original film's opening act and establishes why he wants to arrange a marriage between his son, Idi (Rotimi), and Prince Akeem's oldest daughter, Meeka (KiKi Layne). General Izzi explains that Akeem's fateful decision to abandon Imani resulted in decades of poverty for his country Nexdoria, and he now wants to ensure that the future King of Zamunda will figuratively repay his debt, which will inevitably lead to a profitable relationship. As evidence of his family's suffering, General Izzi presents Imani herself, who continues to bark like a dog, either because of psychological trauma or because she still believes that her behavior will please the King-to-Be.
Calloway's brief cameo in Coming 2 America sets up the conflict between Akeem's son, Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler), and General Izzi's striking daughter, Bopoto (Teyana Taylor). Just as the original film explains why Murphy's character needs to leave Africa, the sequel does the same for Lavelle, with the twist being that he initially moves from Queens to Zamunda to receive royal training to become the next prince. General Izzi unsurprisingly proposes a marriage between his daughter and Akeem's rightful heir, which sets up a duet between Taylor (a real-life musician) and Fowler. In a callback to Coming to America, Lavelle discovers that Bopoto doesn't have any life ambition, aside from being his obedient wife. This full-circle revelation makes it obvious that Fowler's character will pursue a romance with his primary love interest, Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha), and thus kicks off the final act.
Because Coming 2 America is so obedient to the original film's structure and humor, the Izzi family members aren't fully developed as characters. The Calloway cameo offers some nostalgia-themed comedy early on, while Snipes' character mostly remains in the background as a vague threat, but also someone who knows that it's best not to upset the King. By the final act, Coming 2 America misses an opportunity to once again showcase Taylor's talent, and instead features a performance from Randy Watson - the off-pitch singer from Coming to America's Black Awareness Week sequence. To its credit, however, the Amazon Prime sequel immediately pays off the original film's Imani joke within the first 10 minutes.