Kooky for ‘Crazy Rich Asians’
Buzzy movie adaptation arrives Aug. 17.
This summer is about to get crazy. More accurately, the summer is about to get Crazy Rich Asians (in theaters Aug. 17), a film adaptation of the first book in author Kevin Kwan’s popular series.
The highly anticipated romantic dramedy, directed by Jon M. Chu, is the first major Hollywood film in 25 years with an all-Asian cast that isn’t a period piece — more than two decades removed from the last big-budget movie of the same ilk, The Joy Luck Club.
The story follows the comedic madness that ensues when secret multimillionaire Nick Young brings his girlfriend, NYU economics professor Rachel Chu, home to visit his über-wealthy family in Singapore. From the dreamily decadent trailer to the on-point casting, here are all the details we know so far.
The trailer is crazy luxurious
The first footage is dripping in highfashion looks, flashy jewelry and lavish mansions. With Nick’s crazy rich family estates and the Singapore scenery as the backdrop, the movie is bound to be indulgent.
In the trailer, Rachel asks Nick: “So your family is rich?”
“We’re comfortable,” he responds, to which Rachel replies, “That’s exactly what a super-rich person would say!”
The cast is crazy beautiful
Fresh Off the Boat star Constance Wu plays Rachel, while Hollywood rookie Henry Golding is Nick. Michelle Yeoh stars as Nick’s conniving mother, Eleanor, while Gemma Chan scored the role of Nick’s fashionable and enviable cousin, Astrid Leong.
Kwan said that during early production meetings, a producer asked him to reconsider the ethnicity of Rachel’s AsianAmerican character. “They wanted to change the heroine into a white girl,” Kwan told Entertainment Weekly. “I was like, ‘Well, you’ve missed the point completely.’ I said, ‘No, thank you.’ ”
Rapper-turned-actor Awkwafina stars as Rachel’s new-money best friend, Goh Peik Lin, with Ken Jeong as her father, Goh Wye Mun. Chris Pang and Sonoya Mizuno grabbed the roles of Nick’s best friend, Colin, and his bride-to-be, Araminta.
For the rest of Nick’s family, Superstore’s Nico Santos plays cousin Oliver T’sien; Ronny Chieng is cousin Eddie Cheng; Remy Hii is cousin Alistair Cheng; and Lisa Lu is Nick’s grandmother and family matriarch, Shang Su Yi.
When the trailer made its debut, controversy erupted online about the seeming lack of darker-skinned Asians and Singaporean accents.
Golding’s casting also received some criticism because he’s half-white, halfAsian. “I’ve lived 16, 17 years of my life in Asia, and that’s most of my life,” Golding told Entertainment Weekly. “I was born in Asia, I’ve lived cultures that are synonymous with Asian culture, but it’s still not Asian enough for some people.”
The book is crazy popular
Kwan’s first novel in the series was released in 2013 to mostly positive reviews. Producer Nina Jacobson picked up the movie rights about a month after the book’s release.
The book sparked two sequels: China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems.
The author is crazy involved
For fans who are worried that the movie will stray too far from the book, Kwan says he has been a big part of the process since the beginning.
“I’ve been involved since Day 1, consulting,” Kwan said in an interview with Cosmopolitan.
Kwan has posted multiple pictures with the cast on Instagram, from the filming process through promoting the movie.
He captioned one shot with a plea to reunite: “Is it too soon for a CRA beach reunion?”