The Crazy Rich Asians gang is getting back together in a story based on the second novel in the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy. Jon M. Chu, who directed the film (that Netflix wanted to buy and that he said no to), and that ruled the box office its first week in theaters, 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.
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.
The plan is to also bring back screenwriters Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim (who penned Crazy Rich Asians).
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. 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 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.
