As anyone who has travelled to the Far East recently will tell you, Asians do feel crazy rich these days. As the West continues to decline, or even collapse around our ears, as we reach the rear-end of post-war neo-liberalism and a litany of moronic, self-harming decisions, Asia often feels like it is streaking ahead.
Safe cities, plentiful and clean public transport, public wi-fi speeds that make us feel positively neanderthal. It can be quite jarring when you get out there.
So we can forgive the industrious little fellows for some self-congratulatory bragging, like making a movie and now a TV show about how they are considerably, considerably, richer than you!
The 2018 romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians was a smash hit. It followed a Chinese American professor, Rachel, who travels to Singapore with her boyfriend Nick and is shocked to discover that Nick’s family is one of the richest families in Singapore. Cue much hilarity. The film grossed over $238 million against a $30 million budget, making it the highest-grossing romantic comedy of the 2010s.
Now, HBO Max is launching a series spin-off from the movie and has dropped an announcement trailer.
The trailer also confirms that Constance Wu, Henry Golding, and Ronny Chieng have all signed on with Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh as a recurring guest star.
The series will begin production next year. Adele Lim, who co-wrote the movie, has been set as showrunner and executive producer. Original director Jon M. Chuwill be another executive producer along with Emmy-winning producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson.
Lim said in a statement:
“It’s a ‘Crazy Rich’ family reunion! This series is the sequel we’ve been waiting for, but instead of just one movie, we get eight episodes to delve into the characters and worlds of Kevin Kwan’s brilliant books. Getting to work with the original creative team with the support and vision of HBO and Warner Bros. Television has been a dream. Our writers room is humming and we can’t wait to share what we’ve come up with.”
The series will be co-produced by HBO and Warner Bros. Television.
