Crazy Rich Asians is the latest film to get the musical treatment
As we’ve seen with the premieres of song-filled films like Mean Girls and The Color Purple, the “movie to musical to movie musical” pipeline is becoming an increasingly present force in our culture. Whether film or stage theatergoers like it or not, it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down any time soon. The latest film to complete at least the first step of this process is 2018's Crazy Rich Asians, which is currently under development for a new stage adaptation (per The Hollywood Reporter). New York’s iconic TKTS same-day ticket booth is going to look like a Netflix menu any day now.
Original film director Jon M. Chu is returning to the world of really high-stakes Mahjong games to direct the stage adaptation, in what will be his Broadway debut, assuming the show makes it all the way there. (It likely will—this story does feel particularly suited towards New York glitz and glam.) But while he’s never helmed a large-scale movie-to-stage production like this, Chu is currently one of the biggest names in the reverse, stage-to-movie path. The first of his Wicked films hits theaters this November, and he also led the 2021 film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In The Heights.
While the original film was not a musical, the stage adaptation naturally will be. (It was kind of choreographed like one though, which should make this production’s job a lot easier.) KPOP’s Helen Park will be composing the music, with lyrics by Amanda Green (Hands On A Hardbody, Bring It On) and Singaporean producer and songwriter Tat Tong.
Crazy Rich Asians—which will announce its off-Broadway engagement soon—is far from the only musical based on a movie out there right now. Broadway is currently or soon-to-be hosting adaptations of Back To The Future, The Notebook, Moulin Rouge, The Outsiders, Water For Elephants, and more. Just yesterday, it was announced that Kit Connor and Rachel Zegler would be starring in a new, “brutal” envisioning of Romeo + Juliet, that doesn’t seem to be explicitly taken from Baz Luhrmann’s classic film, but sure is styled that way, “+” sign and all. If so, we could be staring down our first play-to-movie-to-musical-to-movie-musical ever. At least if it has to happen, it should be christened one of the most iconic shows of all time.
While this whole concept of course isn’t new, it has been steadily picking up steam in recent years. Now that studios have realized they can double dip on tickets to their own movies, why would they ever stop? Maybe Nicole Kidman will have to tap dance in her next AMC promo.
