#RepresentationMatters: Jon M. Chu To Direct “Crazy Rich Asians”

The romantic comedy is one of the only studio films starring an all-Asian cast

2015 was a really important year for diversity in television. For the first time in over 20 years, we got not one, but two network sitcoms starring Asian-American families: Fresh Off The Boat and Dr. Ken. And Nickelodeon gave us Make It Pop, the first children’s series to star an Asian cast. As for Disney Channel, they’ve currently got two Asian-American actresses in starring roles: Nina Lu (Bunk’d) and Madison Hu (Bizaardvark). It’s been awesome to see more authentic representations (and less ridiculous stereotypes) of Asian-Americans on television.

l-r: Nina Lu (Bunk’d), Krista Marie Yu & Albert Tsai (Dr. Ken), & Forrest Wheeler (Fresh Off the Boat) at the YSBnow launch party in October 2015

Earlier today, we learned that the representation we’ve been loving on TV is now making its way to the big screen! After a bidding war between several major film studios, the romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians is set to start production and will star an all-Asian cast. Crazy Rich Asians, described as The Devil Wears Prada meets Pride & Prejudice, is based on the bestselling novel of the same name. We’re so in!

And as if we needed another reason to be excited, Jon M. Chu, the man behind both Justin Bieber docs and Step Up 3D, is set to direct the film!

In the past, when asked about diversity in Hollywood, Chu has said that it’s a tough and awkward topic to discuss. Now, however, things are starting to look different (literally!) “It’s getting less awkward and it’s getting more like we’re all in the conversation,” says Chu. 

YES! Diversity and representation are so important – and help each and every one of us remember that we’re all so beautiful now. 

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