Crazy Rich Asians 2: Everything We Know About The Sequel

Since the first film premiered in 2018, fans have demanded a Crazy Rich Asians 2 from the cast and director John M. Chu. The wildly successful film about Chinese billionaires, love, and family made waves as a step forward for Asian representation in Hollywood. 

So when will we get the continuation of the story of these successful characters? How soon will we enjoy the opulence and glamor of Rachel and Nick’s wedding? 

Let’s talk about everything we know about the sequel based on the Crazy Rich Asians book trilogy.

Crazy Rich Asians 2: The Setbacks to the Sequel

With the astronomical box office success of Crazy Rich Asians in 2018, and the set-up from the mid-credit scene, a sequel seemed guaranteed. After all, the movie is based on a trilogy by Kevin Kwan, so there’s no shortage of source material. However, Crazy Rich Asians 2 has faced a lot of setbacks that have made regrouping cast members quite difficult.

First, the movie lost one of its writers, Adele Lim. She left the project, claiming to The Hollywood Reporter that Peter Chiarelli, her co-writer, received significantly more compensation. His offer for the second film allegedly fell somewhere between $800,000 to $1 million. So Lim should have received the same, right? After all, they wrote the screenplay for the original movie together. 

Nope. Her offer started at $110,000. 

Chiarelli offered to split his earnings with her, but she said that was beside the point. Lim spoke out concerning the pay disparity and said, “Pete has been nothing but incredibly gracious, but what I make shouldn’t be dependent on the generosity of the white-guy writer. 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.” Amy Wang has now joined the project.

However, one of the other pitfalls of creating Crazy Rich Asians 2 is the crazy success of the first film. Constance Wu, who plays Rachel Chu, and Henry Golding, who plays Nick Young, are both incredibly successful, busy actors. Henry Golding almost turned down the role, as he feared he didn’t have enough experience. He reportedly said it should go to a “legitimate actor” and declined multiple auditions. Anyone who’s seen the movie knows that he was absolutely the perfect actor for the role, but that put his career into high gear. Even secondary characters like Gemma Chan and Awkwafina have become even busier, as both have now joined the MCU. Awkwafina also joined Disney animation as the voice of the dragon Sisu, expanding her voiceover portfolio.

What Will Crazy Rich Asians 2 Be About?

Since we have the books to reference, we have a pretty good idea of where the plot for the film adaptation could go. The first movie stayed true to the first book of the same name. Next in the series is China Rich Girlfriend, and the final book of the trilogy is Rich People Problems. A major part of China Rich Girlfriend was set up quite well at the end of the first movie. Astrid reconnects with her first fiance at Nick’s engagement party after getting cheated on. This becomes a major plot point in the book, but the writers might save this plotline for a TV spinoff.

So if we look at the rest of China Rich Girlfriend, it follows Rachel and Nick as they prepare for their extravagant wedding. Rachel struggles knowing that her birthfather, a man she’s never met, will not be there to walk her down the aisle. We discover new characters along the way, and finally meet Rachel’s father.

However, the writers could go in a completely different direction. We won’t know for sure until we get some official updates.

The Potential Crazy Rich Asians 2 Cast

We have no official word on casting yet, but here are some of the characters we expect to return for Crazy Rich Asians 2:

• Constance Wu as Professor Rachel Chu
• Henry Golding as Nick Young
• Michelle Yeoh as Eleanor Young
• Gemma Chan as Astrid Young Teo
• Awkwafina as Peik Lin Goh
• Harry Shum Jr. as Charlie Wu

We don’t yet know who will play the roles, but if the movie follows the plot of the books, characters Carlton Bao, Colette Bing, and Roxanne Ma should join the cast.

Crazy Rich Asians Spinoff

If Crazy Rich Asians 2 isn’t enough for fans of the first film, they don’t need to worry. There’s a spin-off show from the same cinematic universe coming from Warner Bros. in the works. It follows the love story of fan-favorite characters Astrid Young Teo (played by Gemma Chan) and Charlie Wu (played by Harry Shum Jr.). 

In Crazy Rich Asians, Astrid discovers that her husband has been cheating on her. At her cousin Nick Young’s engagement party, she reconnects with her first love (and former fiance) Charlie Wu. The novels by Kevin Kwan detail how Astrid’s parents broke this engagement, as their socioeconomic differences made them an unsuitable pair. We can’t wait to see Astrid find love again, and this time with a man who deserves her.

Crazy Rich Asians 2 Release Date Speculation

As Crazy Rich Asians 2 is currently still in the development stage, we don’t yet have word on a release date. Check back later on to see future updates!