Gemma Chan’s getting her own Crazy Rich Asians spinoff

Jon M. Chu’s Crazy Rich Asians was a landmark moment in recent film—not least of which because it apparently clued Hollywood executives in to the (not exactly revelatory) fact that there was good money to be made from giving actual studio support to the already amazing work Asian-American creators were doing in the film industry. Now Deadline reports that Warner Bros. is set to expand the franchise, putting into development a spin-off movie centered on Gemma Chan’s character, Astrid, who was a supporting presence in the original film.

Specifically, the as-yet-untitled film will follow Astrid (unhappily married in the original movie) as she falls in love with Charlie, previously played by Harry Shum Jr. The film is being developed by Jason Kim, whose recent script credits include Barry, Love, and Girls, working from plot elements from author Kevin Kwan’s 2015 sequel novel, China Rich Girlfriend. Kim is set to write the script, after apparently winning execs over with his pitch for the spinoff’s approach.

To be clear, Kim’s movie is a wholly separate thing from the Crazy Rich Asians sequel (also, reportedly, based off of China Rich Girlfriend) that’s been in the works for a few years now; it’s not clear whether stars Constance Wu and Henry Golding will appear in the spinoff, or whether the two different plotlines from Kwan’s novel will be thoroughly split into their separate films.

Chan has had a busy schedule over the last couple of years, most notably headlining her own Marvel movie with Eternals. She also had a co-starring role in Disney’s Raya And The Last Dragon (appearing alongside Crazy Rich Asians’ Awkwafina).

Crazy Rich Asians was, as we noted above, a pretty massive hit for Warner Bros., bringing in $238 million—gangbusters, for a $30 million rom-com. Plans to bulk up the franchise have been slowed, both by the pandemic, and by pay disputes raised by former screenwriter Adele Lim; Amy Wang is now set to write the sequel’s script.