$239 Million Movie’s Netflix Success Makes Me More Hopeful For A Sequel After 6-Year Wait

The success of Crazy Rich Asians on Netflix, six years after the movie’s initial release, shows the film is a prime candidate for a sequel. Released in 2018, Crazy Rich Asians earned $239 million, an impressive amount compared to its $30 million budget. Its success established it as the fourth highest-grossing romance movie in 2018.

The film is based on Kevin Kwan’s novel of the same name from 2013. The all-Asian cast of Crazy Rich Asians was headlined by Constance Wu, who played Rachel Chu, a professor who travels to Singapore for a wedding and meets her boyfriend Nick’s (Henry Golding) wealthy and pretentious family. Though the movie and book endings of Crazy Rich Asians were relatively conclusive, there is still more content for a sequel. However, after six years of waiting for a follow-up to the successful initial film, many viewers have already given up hope for a sequel.

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Crazy Rich Asians Being Popular On Netflix Shows Crazy Rich Asians 2 Should Still Happen

The Movie Reached No. 7 On Netflix’s U.S. Charts

On June 6, 2024, Crazy Rich Asians was added to Netflix and quickly joined the U.S. Top 10 Chart.Crazy Rich Asians‘ success on Netflix shows that even six years after its release, its popularity has endured. And there is more original content upon which to build on its world. Crazy Rich Asians was a relatively faithful adaptation of its book. This means adapting the content of the book’s sequels, China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, would be relatively straightforward. A sequel based on the book China Rich Girlfriend would follow Rachel and Nick searching for Rachel’s birth father, a quest set up in the original film.

Why Crazy Rich Asians 2 Hasn’t Happened Yet

Creative Differences And The Pandemic Slowed Production

There were many reasons for halting the immediate production of a follow-up film. After the initial movie’s success, many actors and producers were prepared to create a sequel. Unfortunately, filming was set to begin in 2020 and was delayed due to the pandemic. Internally, the first film’s co-writer, Adele Lim, left the project, acknowledging the pay disparity between her and her co-writer, Peter Chiarelli. Additionally, enough time has passed that since the film’s release in 2018, Crazy Rich Asians’ star-studded cast is now working on other projects and franchises, posing scheduling challenges for a potential sequel.

Instead of a sequel, in June 2024, HBO confirmed a Crazy Rich Asians TV show is in production. However, specific details, including the series’ plot, remain confidential. Warner Bros. is also reportedly developing a Crazy Rich Asian spinoff following Astrid and Charlie after their relationship was teased at the end of the first film. While a direct follow-up may not be immediate, the ongoing popularity of the Crazy Rich Asians universe shows that the franchise is still in demand, and the film deserves a proper sequel.

Crazy Rich Asians

Based on the global best-selling series Crazy Rich Asians is a  romantic comedy that follows New York Rachel Chu to Singapore to meet her boyfriend’s family. However, she soon discovers her significant other is hiding a secret – his family is one of the wealthiest families in Singapore – and her mother already disapproves of her and her origins. Rachel will attempt to find her place in the madness and prove her own worth to a family of unflinching prejudice.  

Director

Jon M. Chu

Release Date

August 15, 2018

Studio(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

Writers

Pete Chiarelli , Adele Lim

Runtime

121 Minutes

Budget

$30 million

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