By Last week, it was reported that Crazy Rich Asians co-writer Adele Lim had left the production of the sequel over a pay dispute. Being offered considerably less than her colleague Peter Chiarelli, Lim exited the project to take a stand to achieve parity for women of all races in Hollywood. While obviously saddened over the situation, director Jon M. Chu has pledged his support to Lim over her decision.
In a lengthy statement posted to Twitter yesterday, Chu says, “For those of you asking, you bet your ass I stand with Adele! I believed in her before we ever shot the movie and I believe in her beyond.” He then details how this isn’t the first time he’s encountered a similar problem and likely won’t be the last. When Chu first learned Lim was unhappy, he got together with Warner executives, but too much time had passed. Lim felt she wasn’t being given an offer reflective of her work and left the project.
“I am, of course, frustrated that we all can’t do the next one together, but I think the conversation this has started is MUCH more important than ourselves,” Chu writes. “I agree with Adele that parity for women and people of color is crucial to the continued enlightenment of our industry and we still have a long way to go.”
Chu then concludes his statement by asking that fans of the film do not go after Chiarelli for this matter. As should be obvious to most sane people, Chiarelli is not responsible for the low offer Lim was given and the production of any film is a collaborative effort between many individuals. While it is sad that Lim won’t be returning, your anger shouldn’t be directed at the individuals working on the film.
