KEVIN KWAN
AS HE RELEASES HIS NEW NOVEL, SEX AND VANITY, AUTHOR KEVIN KWAN TALKS TO ok! ABOUT FAME, FORTUNE AND FRIVOLITY
When Kevin Kwan first sat down to write Crazy Rich Asians, little did he know that five years later, the screen adaptation would become Hollywood’s highest-grossing romcom in nearly a decade, starring the likes of Gemma Chan and Henry Golding.
This month, he’s celebrating the publication of Sex And Vanity, the first in a new trilogy, following New York it-girl Lucie.
Here, Kevin, 47, tells OK!
how his life is a far cry from the lavish worlds he dreams up...
Congratulations on the publication of Sex And Vanity. How easy was it to move away from the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy?
I was glad not to have to write about crazy rich Asians again, although there are some crazy rich Asians in this book. But the focus is this beautiful love story and Lucie’s coming of age.
How much of Lucie’s New York lifestyle is based on your own experiences there?
I lived in New York for 22 years, so it’s very much my love letter to the city. When I moved to New York, I actually had one friend. I slept on her sofa the first week. I didn’t know a soul and within a month I found a whole new family of friends.
Did you ever expect Crazy Rich Asians to become the success it has?
I didn’t even expect Crazy Rich Asians to get published! I was just writing it for myself and a few friends. That’s why I made it so mad. I filled it with these crazy characters and lots of name-dropping – stuff I’d normally never do as a professional writer. I broke all the rules I made for myself and I think that’s what made it work.
How did it feel to know the film was the first in Hollywood to feature an all-asian cast since The Joy Luck Club?
It’s insane. There was Flower Drum Song in the 60s. Interestingly, my cousin Nancy Kwan was in that. It was 20-odd years later that The Joy Luck Club happened, and then another 20-odd years until my movie! It’s very surprising but I was honoured that this was the movie that broke the dam.
You said recently that your life exploded after that, and you’re still putting it back together. Have there been negatives to global success?
It’s mainly been positive. After the movie, I went on a world tour and then I got all these offers to work on Hollywood projects. I felt like I had to take all these opportunities, because when is this going to happen again? I was working and travelling non-stop. I can’t complain – these are Champagne problems!
Is your lifestyle anything like the lavish worlds you create in your writing?
I would say it’s a 100 per cent no! [Laughs] I set novels in those worlds but if anyone came into my world, they’d be very disappointed. I don’t live a crazy, rich life in that sense. I have a very simple life. Having lived in small apartments in New York, I’m a minimalist. ok!
SEX AND VANITY IS OUT NOW