Stephanie Hsu and Ashley Park’s Trip to China Goes Off the Rails in Raunchy Trailer for Asian-Led Comedy ‘Joy Ride’ (Video)

How could a trip to the motherland go so hilariously, disastrously wrong? The quartet at the heart of Adele Lim’s “Joy Ride” – Ashley Park, Sherry Cola, Stephanie Hsu and Sabrina Wu – have no idea what they’re in for at the top of the trailer, which Lionsgate released Friday ahead of the film’s premiere at SXSW.

The trailer begins with the origin story of Audrey (Park) and Lolo’s (Cola) friendship, when they meet at a park as young kids. Lolo punches a white boy in the throat after he calls Audrey a racist slur, sealing the deal on their lifelong friendship. Flash forward to the future and Audrey is preparing to visit China to find her birth parents, with Lolo as her translator. In Beijing, they link up with Kat (Hsu), Audrey’s college friend, now a Chinese soap star, as well as Lolo’s eccentric cousin Deadeye (Wu).

Also Read:
‘Everything’ Almost Everywhere: 10 Moments That Defined an Awards Season

The trip takes a turn when they set out for the city where Audrey’s birth mother lives. On the train, they have the misfortune of sharing a car with a drug dealer (Meredith Hagner) who leaves them with all the extremely illegal contents in her bag. A series of high-stakes missteps, life lessons and plenty of debauchery follow as they attempt to dispose of the drugs and get the trip back on track. (In one scene, they pretend to be a K-pop band to get past airport security with an impromptu rendition of Cardi B’s “WAP.”)

The film co-stars Ronny Chieng, Desmond Chiam, Alexander Hodge, and Chris Pang.

Adele Lim, who wrote “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Raya and the Last Dragon” makes her directorial debut with the film. The script is by Cherry Chevapravatdumrong and Teresa Hsiao, with a story by Lim, Chevapravatdumrong and Hsiao. They produced alongside Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, and Josh Fagen. Lionsgate produced in collaboration with Point Grey and Red Mysterious Hippo.

“Joy Ride” premieres in July 7, 2023. Check out the trailer above.

Also Read:
Bruce Campbell Shuts Down ‘Evil Dead Rise’ Heckler at SXSW: ‘Get the F— Outta Here’ (Video)