‘This Story Transcends Race’: Kevin Kwan on the Appeal of ‘Crazy Rich Asians’

With its lavish banquets, helicopter escapes and sweeping descriptions of Singapore’s lush coast, Kevin Kwan’s novel “Crazy Rich Asians” practically begs to be turned into a film. But when Kwan wrote the book, which was published in 2013, he never thought his set pieces would spring to life. “I told a story that I think was very cinematic. Did I ever dare to dream it would ever happen? Absolutely not,” he said in a phone interview with The New York Times on Friday. “I didn’t think I would even get it published to begin with.”

Not only did the book get published and top best-seller lists, but the ensuing film has stormed to No. 1 at the box office, buoyed by warm reviews and aggressive theater-renting campaigns. The film has carried the weight of being the first Hollywood film with an all-Asian cast and a contemporary story since “The Joy Luck Club” in 1993. And even though the movie has been out for less than a week, Kwan says it has already increased the appetite for different kinds of stories in Hollywood. These are edited excerpts from Friday’s conversation.

A: I was in Philadelphia, and there were two white dudes in their 50s who went to a screening. One of the guys admitted: “I haven’t cried in a movie in the longest time — but I cried.” And his friend was like, “Yeah, I cried too.”

This was not the target demographic. But it’s funny to see them admitting to this and being so surprised by their own reaction. It’s great to hear that, because that’s what we believed from the beginning: that this story transcends race.

A: This made it into “Crazy Rich Asians”: There was this family that had recently suffered a personal tragedy. A Christian counselor had come over and was destroying everything that was Chinese or had any dragons or idols. I was 10 years old, and remember watching from the sidelines in this enormous mansion as they were tipping vases to the floor. The maids are weeping: They see fortunes they can’t even make in their whole lifetime being destroyed right in front of them — and they have to literally sweep it up. I can’t make this stuff up.

A: Jon [Chu, the film’s director] and I had many many long talks over this. I knew and understood his vision: that even though there are decadent scenes, you look beyond that. The story at the heart of it is about a family, a couple, a mother and a son. And there’s where the true crazy richness lies in the story.

A: I don’t think I actually got that dollar, quite frankly. Basically, I was trying to make myself as amenable to the deal as possible. I didn’t want things to be held up by money. I wanted the money to be spent hiring a great screenwriter — to really adapt my book rather than to pay me some stupid option fee. And it gave me a partnership stake in the whole process. So it was worth every dollar — it was worth that dollar. [laughs]

A: It definitely came up in the room and was something we deliberated about for a very long time. We were hyper-conscious of what would happen and how people would respond. But at the end of the day, we really felt that he really was the perfect Nick. We had to put aside our own issues to see that.

I understand the issue, and I’m glad it came up. But being from Singapore, which is such a multicultural society, and having so many cousins who are mixed race — and seeing their struggle as mixed-race Asians who aren’t fully accepted on either side — I really have a lot of empathy for that. How are they not Asian? How is Henry Golding, who has spent most of his life living in Asia, considered not Asian? Fifty years ago, he wouldn’t be let into a lot of private clubs just based on the way he looks.

A: Absolutely. There’s tremendous interest now in projects that I’m developing going forward. I see it also with the cast: All of them have different pots that are boiling. They’re being offered different roles and possibilities. We’re seeing how all these actors are in demand in a whole new way, and in projects that aren’t just Asian based. The climate’s already changing.

A: Crazy poor Asians. Or just crazy average Asians. I’ve written three books about the 1 percent. Now, it’s all about exploring this wide spectrum and showing other facets of Asians around the world. I want to show how they can be as cool as the crazy rich Asians, if not more.

I’m also developing a TV series with Amazon. It’s going to be set in Hong Kong, and it’s about the most powerful and ruthless family there. It’s going to be very different in tone and subject matter.

A: I really hope so. A few of the actors and me, we snuck into one of the screenings in Union Square and were watching as the credits rolled. The minute that scene played, people were screaming. It was hilarious to watch.

We are definitely trying to set things up for a sequel. But it all depends on this movie performing well and having legs. This is not up to us.