The release of Crazy Rich Asians in 2018 was a brilliant display of Asian talent in Hollywood. Helming the cast was Constance Wu, who played the strong and feminine Rachel Chu. “I think [Crazy Rich Asians was] a comedy that has inspired a new, younger generation of Asians to pursue lives guided by passion and art instead of superficial things like money, prestige, or brand names,” said Wu. 

After her performance took the world by storm, the actress decided to take a break from social media in 2019 to ground herself and rediscover her inner peace. “I spent a lot of time reading, connecting with friends in a real-life, non-internet way,” she shared. “I think we’d all be braver, better, kinder people if we stopped communicating with texts and social media and went back to connecting with spoken phone conversations and in-person visits without the presence of any phones in sight.” She continued, “Nothing is more depressing to me than seeing people at a dinner table with their phones on. Put them away! Connect with the real person in front of you!”

Now a mother, Wu has returned to the limelight with her new musical comedy film Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile. She plays the role of Mrs. Primm, who is also a mother. “I’ve always wanted to do a musical,” she revealed. “I’m a very different kind of mother from Mrs. Primm.  But the real-life love of a mother for her child is something that I think I only fully understood once I became a mother myself.” 

Love is a universally enduring theme, one that lies at the heart of Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile. Based on Bernard Waber’s children’s book of the same name, the film follows the Primm family as they navigate the ins and outs of their new life in New York after discovering a singing crocodile, Lyle, in their attic. “After watching this movie, I hope both kids and adults can feel laughter, warmth and joy,” shared Wu.