'Crazy Rich Asians' Sequel Moves Forward With Director Jon M. Chu, Writers Returning

[Batman1980]

The creative team behind Warner Bros.' breakout romantic comedy is planning to reunite for the sequel, based on Kevin Kwan's second book, 'China Rich Girlfriend.'
[This post contains spoilers for Warner Bros.’ Crazy Rich Asians.]

The Crazy Rich Asians gang is getting back together. Jon M. Chu, who helmed the groundbreaking film that ruled the box office with a $35.3 million five-day opening, is planning to return for the sequel. Warner Bros.' is moving forward with development on the follow-up, with plans to reunite the first movie's original team, including producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson of Color Force and John Penotti of Ivanhoe, and also bring back screenwriters Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim.

Chu, whose past credits include 2016's Now You See Me 2 and 2013's G.I. Joe: Retaliation, does have a packed schedule, but sources say he'd likely helm the follow-up to Crazy Rich Asians after shooting the long-awaited adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first musical, In the Heights, which Warners has scheduled for a June 26, 2020, release.

Warner Bros. has not yet officially greenlighted the sequel (it's standard practice for a studio to take a wait-and-see approach with a new potential franchise) but is moving forward on development. The studio and its CEO and chairman Kevin Tsujihara took a risk by greenlighting a comp-less film starring an all-Asian cast and a very specific story set in Singapore, but with the massive opening weekend results, a strong performance in weeks to come will all but guarantee the sequel is a go. The $30 million production, the first Hollywood studio movie since 1993’s The Joy Luck Club to feature an all-Westernized Asian ensemble, has opened better than any other comedy this year and and any rom-com since 2015’s Trainwreck.

Warner Bros. has the option for Kevin Kwan’s entire trilogy, which includes 2015’s China Rich Girlfriend and 2017’s Rich People Problems. “We have a plan with Kevin for the next two films,” says producer Simpson.

Chu smartly teased the possible sequel in the final moments of the first film. Like any classic romantic comedy, Crazy Rich Asians wraps up happily ever after, with the entire ensemble gathered on the rooftop of Singapore’s iconic Marina Bay Sands resort to celebrate the engagement of Nick (Henry Golding) and Rachel (Constance Wu). But unlike most romantic comedies, the Warner Bros. hit actually ends with a mid-credits scene more commonly seen nowadays in Marvel movies, teasing the subject of the next installment.

The stinger features Nick’s newly single cousin Astrid (Gemma Chan) exchanging meaningful glances at the party with a handsome man (Glee alum Harry Shum Jr.), Charlie Wu, whom fans of Kwan’s novels recognize as Astrid’s first love.

Eagle-eyed viewers spotted Charlie dancing with Astrid in the trailer (a few tantalizing seconds that were instantly immortalized in GIFs), but the moment — which took place earlier in the film, at Colin (Chris Pang) and Araminta's (Sonoya Mizuno) wedding reception — was excised from the film’s final cut, in part to avoid giving the impression that Astrid was leaving her husband, Michael (Pierre Png), for another man.

Instead, Charlie and Astrid’s second chance at romance would take place during a second film, Chu tells THR. “The idea is to tell the story in the next movie,” he says, adding that Shum’s appearance in Crazy Rich Asians was always intended to be a cameo. “I made a promise to Harry, so I’m going to do it.”

In addition to developing Charlie and Astrid’s relationship, China Rich Girlfriend also follows Nick and Rachel to China on her search for her father. But China’s cooperation with such a sequel remains in question, as its government has in recent years strenuously tried to downplay the country’s uber-wealthy class. Crazy Rich Asians has yet to obtain a China release, and a Chinese translation of the 2013 novel was only made available in the country this year.

Source - THR.com

[Creed]

Yep, not surprising.

[imsounoriginal]

Surprised it took them this long to announce it lol

Didn't get to see CRA last night as originally planned, but I'll get to it eventually.

[Darth Marcus]

Source: Variety

Jon M. Chu on Directing ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ Sequel: ‘We Still Have to Close My Deal on It’
By Marc Malkin - SEPTEMBER 24, 2018 6:00AM PT

Is Jon M. Chu directing the sequel and the possible third movie in the “Crazy Rich Asians” franchise?

While he is reportedly on board, Chu tells Variety it’s not official yet. “I’m down to do the next two movies. We’ve been talking a lot about it, but we still have to close my deal on it,” Chu said at the Palisades Village opening gala on Thursday.

“Crazy Rich Asians” is based on the first book of a trilogy written by Kevin Kwan.

“We would love to have the cast back,” Chu said. “We have such a deep bench of cast and we only used them a little bit. We would love to show them off a lot more.”

The groundbreaking film is the first movie in 25 years since “The Joy Luck Club” to feature a nearly all Asian-American cast, including stars Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Gemma Chan, Awkwafina, Ken Jeong, and Michelle Yeoh.

It wasn’t long after the movie opened last month that Warner Bros. began developing a sequel with Chu and the original cast attached. Wu told Variety at our annual pre-Emmys party earlier this month that Chu was signed on. “He’s just tremendous so it’s exciting,” she said.

Film franchise aside, Chu has another big idea for “Crazy Rich Asians” — a Broadway musical adaptation of the novel. “Maybe we combine a Chinese singer with an Asian-American composer to put it together,” he said. “We have a big band — the band is on the stage itself so you can experience it like you’re at a party. We would have the best fashion. Jason Wu comes in and designs everything. You make an experience for the audience. It would be ridiculous.”

[Darth Marcus]

WB is doing some serious penny-pinching lately.

[imsounoriginal]

Originally Posted by Darth Marcus

WB is doing some serious penny-pinching lately.

Their own fault. The stuff that should've been minting them money has crashed and burned spectacularly, so they're trying to shortchange the movies and filmmakers that are actually turning them a profit. But I'd be surprised if Chu and the rest of the cast don't get the deals they want.

[mwynn]

Originally Posted by Darth Marcus

WB is doing some serious penny-pinching lately.

That was going to happen after the merger happened. They are going to be looking very closely at budgets before they start making cuts.

[Monterey Jack]

What the hell would be the plot? "Living happily ever after" isn't that much of a hook.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Monterey Jack

What the hell would be the plot? "Living happily ever after" isn't that much of a hook.

It won't center on the happily married couple from the first film.

[imsounoriginal]

Originally Posted by Monterey Jack

What the hell would be the plot?

Aren't there two more books to adapt?

[mwynn]

Originally Posted by Monterey Jack

What the hell would be the plot? "Living happily ever after" isn't that much of a hook.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_Rich_Girlfriend

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rich_People_Problems

[Britnasty]

Four years after the monstrous success of the first film, we FINALLY have some movement on the sequel!

Crazy Rich Asians 2 Replaces Writers After Pay Controversy

After a controversy over the pay discrepancy between Crazy Rich Asians’ original two screenwriters, Warner Bros. and Color Force have decided to go in a different direction for Crazy Rich Asians 2. According to Deadline, writer-director Amy Wang is set to write the sequel, replacing the first film’s writers, Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim. Wang previously wrote for Netflix’s Brothers Sun and her short film Unnatural, for which she won a Cannes Lion award in 2018. She has also directed episodes of Starz’s Blindspotting. In late 2019, Lim left negotiations for the sequel after allegedly finding out she was being paid ten times less than her co-writer, Chiarelli. Crazy Rich Asians director Jon M. Chu responded to the news in support of Lim’s decision to leave. Lim went on to co-write Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon. While the sequel’s details remain under wraps, the first film is based on the book trilogy of the same name, by Kevin Kwan. The other two books in the series, China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, continue lead characters Rachel and Nick’s love story as they navigate their relationship and wealth in New York City and Singapore. Chu returns to direct the sequel, while a third Crazy Rich film is in development.

https://www.vulture.com/2022/03/craz...n-updates.html

[MazeRunner]

Dear lord the entire cast will be 50 by the time this comes out.

[-JKR-]

So what?

[Malagant]

My problem with the original film was that I neither found it particularly funny (comedy) nor particularly charming/romantic (romantic comedy), it was an alright intrigue with a few moments here and there but I never could see the greatness that many saw.

But taste is subjective as we know (I f.ex. think a movie like 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' is 10 times better and funnier and more heartfelt than 'Crazy Rich Asians' but others may think the opposite) and I am pleased for those who did enjoy the first film that it gets a sequel.