A year or two later, when Chu was 16, he traveled with a performing arts troupe to the Malaysian state of Sarawak to perform for members of the Iban tribe - the very same ethnic group his future leading man, Golding, hails from. That actress turned out to be Lisa Lu, who 25 years later portrays Nick’s grandmother in Crazy Rich Asians. For instance, after The Joy Luck Club was released, his family won an auction to have dinner with an actress from the film. “There were so many different weird little things that gave us signs that was destiny,” Chu adds.
Last night, it all came full circle in this photo – the first time Vivian, Jon, and I were all together in one place.Ī post shared by Kevin Kwan on at 12:10pm PDT I never dreamed that he would one day direct the film based on my book, a film with a heroine who is inspired by the women in his own family. Chu, the director of “Crazy Rich Asians,” was one of the cousins Vivian had been talking about for so many years. As I moved to the US when I was eleven and had to leave behind my closest cousins, I was fascinated by the stories of her cool American-Born Chinese family, so different from my own, and her stories inspired me when I created the character of Rachel Chu and her family. More than ten years ago, my dear friend Vivian in New York started telling me stories about how she grew up in Northern California amongst all her cousins and how close knit they all were. “I never dreamed that would one day direct the film based on my book, a film with a heroine who is inspired by the women in his own family.” When all three finally came together for Chu’s July 27 wedding, Kwan reflected on the moment in an Instagram post: “More than ten years ago, my dear friend Vivian in New York started telling me stories about how she grew up in Northern California amongst all her cousins… her stories inspired me when I created the character of Rachel Chu and her family,” he wrote. “Kevin’s like, ‘No, I am talking about you,'” Chu says.Īs it turns out, Kwan was very good friends with Chu’s New York-based cousin Vivian, who often spoke fondly of her family back west. As it so happens, the director’s family also hails from the Bay Area, a coincidence that he pointed out to Kwan when the two finally met for the film project. Kevin Kwan’s 2013 novel Crazy Rich Asians contains a reference to Rachel Chu’s extended family in Cupertino, California, and a cousin who made it big in Hollywood making movies. Little did he know how much he had in common with her. 15, THR reveals seven new stories from the making of the romantic comedy.Ĭhu has said that he relates to his film’s heroine, an Asian-American discovering her cultural identity. Yang, Gemma Chan, Ken Jeong, Ronny Chieng and Nico Santos.Īhead of the film’s opening Wednesday, Aug. Chu, the film also stars Michelle Yeoh, Awkwafina, Jimmy O.
romantic comedy follows Rachel Chu (Constance Wu), a Chinese-American woman whose boyfriend, Nick Young (Henry Golding), takes her back to Singapore to meet his wealthy family.
But there are several more anecdotes from the cast and creatives about their adventures on- and off-set in Singapore and Malaysia that didn’t make it to print.
The story of how Crazy Rich Asiansmade its way from a hit book series to the first studio movie featuring an all-Westernized Asian cast in 25 years was revealed in The Hollywood Reporter‘s Aug.