AKON in his new video 'Smack That'

The Senegalese singer takes on EDDIE MURPHY's convict REGGIE HAMMOND from the 1982 film, while video regular Roberts - the brother of Oscar winner JULIA - appears as NICK NOLTE's cop character JACK CATES.

Eminem plays Akon's best friend, who helps the singer locate the girl he has to track down in a Los Angeles club after cops strike a deal to let the LONELY singer walk free from his prison cell if he helps them find their chief prey.

A source close to the rapper says, "Eminem was originally slated to play a cop, but he did not want to play a detective."

It's not the first time Akon and Eminem have worked together on a video - they teamed up to stage a bank robbery together in rapper OBIE TRICE's promo SNITCH.