Crazy Rich Asians returns as HBO drama series with original stars – HBO has ordered an eight-episode, one-hour drama continuing the story of the 2018 film, with several of its central performers set to return.
Constance Wu, Henry Golding and Ronny Chieng are series regulars. Michelle Yeoh will recur. The series is based on Kevin Kwan’s bestselling books and picks up after the events of the film, rather than remaking Rachel Chu and Nick Young’s first meeting.
For Australian viewers, the order is significant because HBO programming is available through HBO Max locally. However, HBO has not announced an Australian premiere date for the new series. The casting announcement confirms the creative direction, not a viewing schedule.
Original film team reunites
Adele Lim, who co-wrote the film, will serve as showrunner and executive producer. Kwan, film director Jon M. Chu, and producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson are also executive producers. The series is co-produced by HBO and Warner Bros. Television.
Lim said the longer format will allow the team to spend more time with Kwan’s characters and world: “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.” She said the writers’ room is already working on the story.
Kwan said fans have waited patiently for a continuation and that the space of an HBO series is an opportunity to develop the story further. Chu called the reunion a chance to answer the question he has heard for years about a sequel.
Chu also reflected on how the film changed the careers of its ensemble. He said the returning cast has since become film stars, superheroes, performers and an Oscar winner, making the reunion feel like a homecoming. Jacobson and Simpson described the continuation as the answer to the question they have heard most often from audiences: when there would be more Crazy Rich Asians.
The film introduced Rachel to Nick’s wealthy family and the social world surrounding them. A continuation rather than a reset allows the television series to build from those established relationships. The announcement does not specify how closely individual episodes will follow the later novels, so readers should not assume a direct book-by-book adaptation.
Lim’s involvement is a key continuity point. She helped write the 2018 screenplay and will now lead the television writers’ room, while Chu remains involved as an executive producer. The creative reunion gives the series a direct link to the film, even as a one-hour television format gives its story more room than another feature would.
What HBO has confirmed
The broadcaster has greenlit the project as an original drama. Wu, Golding and Chieng will return as regulars, and Yeoh is confirmed in a recurring role. HBO has not disclosed additional cast, an episode-by-episode story outline, filming dates or a premiere window.
Casey Bloys, co-chair and chief content officer of Skydance Direct-to-Consumer, said the company was pleased to bring the film’s creative team and cast back. Channing Dungey, chair of Warner Bros. Television Group and US Networks, said Lim’s return would allow the adaptation to retain the mix of glamour, humour and heart associated with Kwan’s world.
The executive-producing roster also includes Chloe Dan and Jeannine Tang for SK Global Entertainment, Naia Cucukov Richards for Lim’s 100 Tigers, and Rose Lam. Jacobson and Simpson’s Color Force developed and produced the original film, while SK Global co-financed it. The film was a major box-office success and brought the characters to an international audience.
A short HBO announcement video accompanies the series order. It should not be mistaken for a trailer of completed series footage: the drama has only just been greenlit, and a release date remains to be announced.
Watch the announcement
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