Chrissy Teigen's Tribute to 'Crazy Rich Asians' Will Make You Tear Up

"You never know how much you miss being represented on screen until you actually see what it’s like to be represented."

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For the second time in a row, Crazy Rich Asians had an insane weekend at the box office, generating an estimated $25 million in 3,256 locations, per Variety. Aside from its incredible plot, this is partially due to Hollywood's lack of inclusivity—and, by extension, this being the first time many people are seeing themselves represented on the big-screen.

One of these people happen to be Chrissy Teigen, who saw the rom-com this weekend with her two-year-old daughter, Luna, and her husband, John Legend, and posted her experience on Instagram. (Chrissy and John also have a son Miles, 3 months, who looks exactly like John.)

In the Instagram, Chrissy is sitting on her knees next to Luna looking longingly at one of the film's designer gowns through a window display. Like everything she posts, Chrissy was completely honest about the movie—noting that she planned on making a few jokes about it, including that it "checked off all of the boxes." However, she never expected to feel the way she did after witnessing her daughter see someone who looked like her on screen.

Grab a few tissues, then read Chrissy's Instagram tribute below:

"What can I really say about this movie that hasn’t been said by absolutely everyone who has seen it. I’ve been excited to see this since production was announced but I could have never imagined how wonderful it would be. I planned on seeing it, making a few jokes about how it checked all the boxes for me (CRAZY ☑️ RICH ☑️ ASIAN ☑️) but the feeling I got during the credits, watching John dance with my little black asian mashup baby bear luna tunes, was a feeling I haven’t had at the end of any other movies. Luna, aside from being blown away by the general movie-going experience (yep she’s 13 now, time flies) looked up at @constancewu’s mother and yelled “yāy!” (“Grandma” in thai) because she saw someone who looked like her yāy. Someone beautiful and aspirational. It was something that simple that made my heart just...warm. That made me happy. It made me happy to see this over the top story done from so many angles, some I could totally understand because of my own confusing Asian American upbringing. I loved it all, from the quieter moments of talking around the table of sacrifice and past hardships to the spectacle of the bachelor party. Finding that I could cry watching the most over the top aisle walk on the planet.

You never know how much you miss being represented on screen until you actually see what it’s like to be represented. And represented by all different types of characters with all different types of personalities, just like any other great movie.
Also aside from all that, it’s just colorful, fun and big as fuck.

God I love a rom com. God I loved it all. Thank you guys for making this movie."

Kevin Kwan, author of the best-selling Crazy Rich Asians series the movie is based on (you can buy the first book in the trilogy here), later commented on Chrissy's post and wrote, "Also, does your husband know he's in my second book 'China Rich Girlfriend?'"

Chrissy responded, "W H A T now he does!!!"

Text, Font, Line, Screenshot, Parallel, Number,

(Image credit: Instagram / @ChrissyTeigen)

I'm not crying, you're crying. If you haven't seen the movie yet, watch the trailer below.

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Rachel Epstein

Rachel Epstein is a writer, editor, and content strategist based in New York City. Most recently, she was the Managing Editor at Coveteur, where she oversaw the site’s day-to-day editorial operations. Previously, she was an editor at Marie Claire, where she wrote and edited culture, politics, and lifestyle stories ranging from op-eds to profiles to ambitious packages. She also launched and managed the site’s virtual book club, #ReadWithMC. Offline, she’s likely watching a Heat game or finding a new coffee shop.