Crazy Rich Asians’ director Jon M. Chu took to Twitter last week to call out what he said was a recent casting scam for the planned sequels.
The ad, which has since been taken down, advertised casting for sequels to the 2018 Hollywood hit Crazy Rich Asians. The Twitter user, Alan Baltes, called for “live Zoom auditions,” listing a need for “Asian actors, ages 20s through 40s” and a Caucasian female between the ages of 25 to 35.
Baltes asked whoever wished to be considered to pay him a $99 “submission fee” through Venmo or Google Pay.
“I kept reading it, and when it said ‘99 dollars,’ I was like, ‘This is f—ed up,’” Chu said to Variety. “There’s so many scams like that in L.A. anyway and to actually target, specifically, Asian actors, was very frustrating.”
He went on to say that this is especially “disgusting,” given that Asian American actors are finally getting a shot at the spotlight and are still being taken advantage of, especially with Asian Americans being “attacked on the streets” for coronavirus-centered xenophobia.
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Chu added that he had alerted the Warner Bros. legal team.
In response, Baltes claimed that someone who “misrepresented himself as being with casting” contacted him because of his job as a talent agent. He added that no money has been paid, and blocked Chu shortly after.
But this apparently isn’t the first time he’s been involved in a casting controversy. Variety reported that Baltes had asked for a $99 fee to apply for a role in Jurassic Park 3, which was flagged by Twitter users.
Chu said that while Crazy Rich Asians sequels are in the works, he and his producers are not currently looking for “new lead roles.” In addition, the expected shooting this year has halted due to the coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic.
In addition, Chu’s latest project, In the Heights, is waiting for its theatrical release in June 2021. The movie is based off of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit musical.
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