✕
Your account
- Account
- Purchase
- Favorite
- News
- Subscriptions
- Address
Sign Up
Create a free account to access exclusive content, play games, solve puzzles, test your pop-culture knowledge and receive special offers.Already have an account? Login
Sign InUp with your social account
We won't post to any of your accounts
Our Editors' Favorite Early Black Friday Deals
Entertainment
By Kaitlin Simpson
The journey to creating a Crazy Rich Asians sequel hasn’t been easy.
Based on the book of the same name by Kevin Kwan, the film followed Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) as she discovers that her boyfriend Nick Young’s (Henry Golding) family is extremely wealthy while traveling with him to Singapore for a wedding. Upon its 2018 premiere, the movie became the most successful rom-com in a decade and paved the way for more representation in Hollywood with its predominantly Asian cast.
Given the movie’s massive success, post-credit scene tease and Kwan’s sequel books, a second installment seemed out of the question. However, the follow-up film has been hit with several development delays.
Thank You!
You have successfully subscribed.
The Crazy Rich Asians team originally planned to film the second and third movies back-to-back in 2020 to accommodate the limited availability of its stars. However, due to the global coronavirus pandemic and other setbacks, the project went on hiatus. Director Jon M. Chu, for his part, went on to work on film adaptations of In the Heights and Wicked.
Scroll down for everything we know about the potential Crazy Rich Asians sequel:
Credit: Sanja Bucko/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
'Crazy Rich Asians' Sequel: Everything to Know About the Possible Follow-Up to the 2018 Hit
The journey to creating a Crazy Rich Asians sequel hasn’t been easy.Based on the book of the same name by Kevin Kwan, the film followed Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) as she discovers that her boyfriend Nick Young’s (Henry Golding) family is extremely wealthy while traveling with him to Singapore for a wedding. Upon its 2018 premiere, the movie became the most successful rom-com in a decade and paved the way for more representation in Hollywood with its predominantly Asian cast.Given the movie’s massive success, post-credit scene tease and Kwan’s sequel books, a second installment seemed out of the question. However, the follow-up film has been hit with several development delays.The Crazy Rich Asians team originally planned to film the second and third movies back-to-back in 2020 to accommodate the limited availability of its stars. However, due to the global coronavirus pandemic and other setbacks, the project went on hiatus. Director Jon M. Chu, for his part, went on to work on film adaptations of In the Heights and Wicked.Scroll down for everything we know about the potential Crazy Rich Asians sequel:
Credit: Sanja Bucko/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
When Does It Premiere?
A premiere date has not been confirmed.
Credit: Sanja Bucko/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
When Does Production Start?
As of March 2022, the film is in the works with Amy Wang writing the screenplay.
Credit: John Salangsang/Shutterstock; Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
What Caused the Delay?
The sequel’s original screenwriter, Adele Lim, left the project in 2019 due to pay disparity. At the time, Lim claimed to The Hollywood Reporter that cowriter Peter Chiarelli received a significantly higher fee in comparison to her own. Chiarelli’s offer allegedly ranged from $800,000 to $1 million, while Lim was offered a measly $110,000. Chiarelli reportedly volunteered to split his earnings with Lim, but she passed.
“Pete has been nothing but incredibly gracious, but what I make shouldn’t be dependent on the generosity of the white-guy writer,” she told the outlet. “If I couldn’t get pay equity after CRA, I can’t imagine what it would be like for anyone else, given that the standard for how much you’re worth is having established quotes from previous movies, which women of color would never have been [hired for]. There’s no realistic way to achieve true equity that way.”
Credit: Courtesy Amy Wang/Instagram
Who Is Writing the Sequel?
Wang was brought on in March 2022 after Lim and Chiarelli stepped down from the project.
Credit: Sanja Bucko/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
Who Is Returning?
No casting has been confirmed, but it is likely stars such as Wu, Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Ken Jeong, Lisa Lu and Harry Shum Jr. would reprise their roles. However, Chu told Deadline in November 2024 that he won’t “bring everyone back” for a Crazy Rich Asians sequel “unless it’s worth it,” adding, “There’s too much on the line for everybody.”
Noting that “the bar is too high,” Chu continued, “I want the best thing. I want it to be worthy of what Crazy Rich Asians 1 was. We’ve tried all different versions. It’s hard because people think the first movie is like the book, but it actually is not. It’s the right spirit, but the plotting is very different. And so, you can’t just go and translate. And we’ve tried versions and the fact is, is that we just haven’t gotten there.”
Credit: Sanja Bucko/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
How Did the Original Film End?
At the end of the first film, fans got a little taste of what to expect from the next movie in a post-credit scene. Astrid Young (Chan) was reunited with her ex-fiancé, Charlie Wu (Shum Jr.), which serves as a main plot point in the second novel. Since the first film practically mirrored the novel, the sequel is likely to stay just as true to Kwan’s story.
Credit: Sanja Bucko/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock
Are There New Characters?
The second of Kwan’s books introduces several new faces, from Rachel’s estranged father to her brother, Carlton Bao. Readers also met fashion blogger Colette Bing and her assistant, Roxanne Ma.
Credit: Eric Charbonneau/Shutterstock
Are Any ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ Spinoffs in the Works?
Deadline reported in May 2022 that Warner Bros. is in the early stages of developing a potential sequel film starring Astrid (Chan) and Charlie (Shum Jr.) after their Crazy Rich Asians post-credit scene reunion. The project is set to be written by Jason Kim. Kwan’s second and third novel in the franchise, China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, highlight the twosome’s budding romance though further details about the unconfirmed project have yet to be revealed.
In April 2024, news broke that Crazy Rich Asians would be turned into a Broadway musical with Chu set to direct the stage adaptation. HBO is also reportedly working on a Crazy Rich Asians TV show.
Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock
Is There a Script?
“They’re working on it,” Wu teased of a sequel script during a June 2022 appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen. She also added that movie will be released “when we finish them.”
Credit: David Fisher/Shutterstock
Why Hasn't the Film Been Released Yet?
"That's the No. 1 question I get asked, and people are just so excited. They want it so bad," Shum Jr. told E! News at the Oscars in March 2023. "I know they're just trying to get it right. Because, you know, when you make a sequel sometimes, it's so sped up and you do it so quickly and you don't get the story right. They're just really trying to get it right so they can give the fans what they want."
In order to view the gallery, please allow Manage Cookies
For access to all our exclusive celebrity videos and interviews – Subscribe on YouTube!