A Little More Crazy, A Little More Rich: Crazy Rich Asians Spinoff Announced

Since Crazy Rich Asians, directed by Jon M. Chu, premiered in 2018, fans have been eagerly awaiting the sequel. The movie, which earned about $239 million at the box office worldwide, became the highest grossest comedy in a decade. The sequel has been delayed due to the pandemic, behind-the-scenes issues that led to Adele Lim, one of the movie’s writers quitting (due to major salary discrepancies between herself and her male co-writer), and the limited availability of its in-demand cast and director. The good news: Amy Wang has since been hired as the new writer and the movie is reportedly in still in development. More good news: Gemma Chan and Harry Shum Jr. will be starring in a Crazy Rich Asians spinoff.

Crazy Rich Asians is based on the book of the same name by Kevin Kwan. It follows Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) as she accompanies her boyfriend Nick Young (Henry Golding) home to Singapore for his best friend’s wedding. Once there, she realizes he is much more than the humble man she believes him to be: he is the country’s most eligible bachelor and the heir to one of the richest Asian families in the world. She is thrust into an elite world that she is ill-equipped to navigate and that very few people want her to be a part of, especially his mother, Eleanor Sung-Young (Michelle Yeoh).

Gemma Chan played Astrid Leong Teo, Nick’s cousin. She is presented as generally well-behaved and demure, the fashionista that everyone wants to be who is also kind and genuine to boot. Harry Shum Jr., introduced briefly during the movie’s mid-credits scene, plays Charlie Wu, Astrid’s first love. The movie ended after Astrid left her husband Michael after she found out he cheated on her and then running into Charlie at a party. In the books, Astrid and Michael’s story is much more complicated and drawn out and she leans on Charlie for help getting through it. Charlie and Astrid both view each other as the one that got away and the movie will follow their romance. There had been more scenes with Charlie and Astrid in the movie, but they were cut because they made it seem like Astrid was leaving Michael in order to be with Michael, rather than for herself.

Photo: Gemma Chan as Astrid in Crazy Rich Asians. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures