Awkwafina reunites with producers of Crazy Rich Asians for gambling drama The Baccarat Machine

Awkwafina will join hands with the producers of _Crazy Rich Asians_ , SK Globals, for The Baccarat Machine. The film will chronicle the story of the world’s most successful female gambler Cheung Yin “Kelly” Sun, and her partnership with professional poker player Phil Ivey, according to The Hollywood Reporter. [caption id=“attachment_4567411” align=“alignnone” width=“824”] Awkwafina. Image from Wikipedia[/caption] The story is inspired by Michael Kaplan’s article ‘The Baccarat Machine’ for Cigar Aficionado, which follows Sun, “a young Chinese woman who turns a painstakingly developed talent and obsession for payback into beating the system at their own game.” After major casinos tried to blacklist her, she partnered with Ivey to take down the system from inside with “subterfuge, ingenuity, and pure daring,” which resulted in one of the most ingenious gambling runs ever recorded. John Penotti and Charlie Corwin of SK Global will produce alongside  Jeffrey Sharp of Sharp Independent Pictures. THR mentions the producers are still in the process of finding a director. Other cast members will be announced shortly. Awkwafina was previously seen on _The Farewell_ , directed by Lulu Wang, for which she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Musical/Comedy. The drama premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2019. It follows a Chinese family, who return to their home country under the guise of a fake wedding to big goodbye to Nai Nai, who is the only person unaware that she has a few weeks to live. Awkwafina also had a role in Jumanji: The Next Level  with Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan. She currently will be seen in Comedy Central’s Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens, which has been renewed for a second season ahead of its premiere. Lori Tan Chinn and BD Wong are also part of the cast. The show sees her as Nora Lin, who lives in Queens, New York with her father and grandmother.