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James Mottram

With the arrival of Wicked, Jon M. Chu must surely now be considered one of Hollywood’s great contemporary musical directors.
The first of two parts, Wicked reframes The Wizard of Oz story – making it a bold choice of stage musical to adapt for the screen.
But after years of dance and music movies, as well as some questionable sequels, the 45-year-old Chu has gradually carved out a reputation as a director with a real ear for romance-driven tales.
Perhaps Wicked will be his first Academy Award nomination, but for the moment we look back at his past films, ranking them from worst to best.
10. GI Joe Retaliation (2013)


The second in the live-action franchise based around the popular action-figure toy, Chu’s Retaliation followed 2009’s The Rise of the Cobra, directed by Stephen Sommers.
Channing Tatum returns as Duke, an intelligence specialist who leads the GI Joe team into the Korean demilitarised zone to rescue a North Korean defector.
Helped by a cast that includes Dwayne Johnson and Bruce Willis, the film made US$375 million worldwide, despite largely negative reviews. Entertainment site Variety called it “a more straight-faced brand of idiocy than its cheerfully dumb 2009 predecessor”, which felt like faint praise for such a spectacle.
9. Justin Bieber’s Believe (2013)


The second Justin Bieber concert film directed by Chu, this followed the Canadian singer on his Believe tour.
Co-produced by Bieber, which makes it a rather sanitised film, Believe is a step down from its predecessor, 2011’s Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, considering it does not even come in 3D like the earlier film.
It is slick enough, with performance footage blended with backstage interviews, and fun cameos from people like The Hangover’s Zach Galifianakis. But while Bieber gets personal about being such a high-profile (and young) star, the film does not add anything new to the story.
8. Step Up 3D (2010)


Chu’s second outing in the Step Up franchise was also his first venture into 3D – arriving a year after Avatar turned Hollywood back onto the old-school format.
Here, Adam Sevani and Alyson Stoner reprise their roles from the franchise as, respectively, Moose and Camille. The plot is barely worth a mention, as Moose heads to New York to pursue electrical engineering after promising his father he would not dance any more – no prizes for guessing he does.
But the moment where Moose and Camille dance as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers is a nice touch.
7. Justin Bieber: Never Say Never (2011)


Chu took on pop icon Bieber in this first of two concert movies he directed. The film builds up to Bieber’s biggest performance of that era, in New York’s Madison Square Garden, a concert that sold out in a staggering 22 minutes.
Despite no interview footage with the star himself – only family and friends get to talk – the 3D film does feature old archive material of him as a kid.
Grossing US$99 million worldwide, the film held the record for the highest grossing music concert movie – at least until Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour film smashed it into oblivion.
6. Now You See Me 2 (2016)


Taking on this sequel to 2013’s Now You See Me, the slick crime film involving a secret society of magicians, Chu began to craft himself a reputation as a journeyman director who takes on follow-ups – see also his Step Up 2 and his GI Joe entry, Retaliation.
To his credit, he carried out his task here with professionalism, as the story sees the quartet of main characters (played by Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo, Dave Franco and Jesse Eisenberg) take on Daniel Radcliffe’s tech tycoon. The addition of Lizzy Caplan as a team member adds to this dumb fun.
5. Jem and the Holograms (2015)


Chu grew up watching the 1980s animated series of the same name with his sisters, and he had long held on to the idea of making a live-action version.
Aubrey Peeples leads the way as Jerrica Benton, a young girl who gets offered a record deal and heads to Los Angeles, where she forms the band Jem and the Holograms with her sisters.
With roles for Juliette Lewis and Molly Ringwald, and the series’ original creator Christy Marx cameoing as a Rolling Stone editor, there is a good-natured quality to Chu’s film that spills over onto the screen.
4. Step Up 2: The Streets (2008)


Chu’s debut film was the sequel to 2006’s dance movie Step Up, directed by Anne Fletcher, which ultimately spawned an entire franchise.
Chu’s film did not feature Step Up star Channing Tatum, an actor he would later work with, but its honest, straightforward approach helped it become a breakout for the director.
Briana Evigan, as the rebellious high-schooler, and Robert Hoffman, as her love interest, are the street-dancing leads, with both helping choreograph the dazzling dance sequences.
Fans of the original were left pleasantly surprised by a film that laid the groundwork for Chu’s later music-and-dance-infused films.
3. Wicked (2024)


Chu’s most ambitious film to date, this first part of the musical sensation inspired by The Wizard of Oz sees two cracking performances from Cynthia Erivo, as the witch Elphaba, and Ariana Grande-Butera, as Glinda, her self-absorbed rival.
Jeff Goldblum is ably cast as the charlatan Oz and Michelle Yeoh as the mentor Madame Morrible, but what really stands out are the bold sets by Nathan Crowley, the production designer famed for working with Batman director Christopher Nolan.
From Shiz University to the Emerald City, the landscape of Oz is beautifully realised. Part II will surely see this project rise up the list.
2. In the Heights (2021)


Chu pours all the skills he garnered on the Step Up films into this adaptation of Lin Manuel-Miranda and Quiara Alegria Hudes’ stage musical.
Set in the Dominican Republic community in New York’s Washington Heights, this exuberant song-and-dance spectacle deserved more attention than it got, arriving as it did during Covid.
Leading a diverse cast, Anthony Ramos excels as Usnavi, the bodega-owning narrator of the story, but from Melissa Barrera to Corey Hawkins, the performances are universally splendid. With some fine choreographed numbers, this is a perfect expression of the power of community.
1. Crazy Rich Asians (2018)


Based on the 2013 novel by Kevin Kwan, Chu’s take on this romantic comedy-drama was a true high point for him.
Constance Wu leads a dream cast, including Gemma Chan, Ken Jeong, Michelle Yeoh and Awkwafina, though none shine more than Henry Golding as Nicholas, the wealthy Singaporean boyfriend to Wu’s economics professor Rachel Chu.
Grossing US$239 million worldwide, the film did much for the Southeast Asian film community, spotlighting a world Hollywood rarely visits.
Two sequels, Crazy Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, are still in development, though there is no word yet on whether they will make it to the screen.
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From Wicked to Crazy Rich Asians and Step Up 2, every film directed by Jon M. Chu ranked

Cynthia Erivo (left) as Elphaba and Ariana Grande-Butera as Glinda in a still from Wicked. Photo: Universal Pictures

(From left) Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande-Butera and director Jon M. Chu on the set of Wicked. We rank this and nine other of Chu’s films. Photo: Universal Pictures

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JK Simmons (left) as Santa Claus and Dwayne Johnson as Callum Drift in a still from Red One. Before you watch this new film, we have 10 other Christmas films for you. Photo: Frank Masi/Prime Video

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Amanda Wyss (front) and Robert Englund in a still from Wes Craven’s classic slasher film, A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). 

(From left) Jsu Garcia, Amanda Wyss, director Wes Craven, Heather Langenkamp and Johnny Depp on the set of A Nightmare on Elm Street.

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Johnny Depp in a still from A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). 

Heather Langenkamp in a still from A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). 

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Mark Edelstein and Mikey Madison in a still from Anora.

Mark Edelstein as oligarch’s son Ivan (centre, left) and Mikey Madison as Anora in a still from Sean Baker’s Palme d’Or-winning film Anora.

Sean Baker won the Palme d’Or for Anora at the 77th Cannes Film Festival. Photo: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

Mark Edelstein as wealthy oligarch’s son Ivan (left) and Mikey Madison as street-smart girl Anora in a still from Anora.

From left: Yura Borisov as henchman Igor, Mark Edelstein as Ivan, Karren Karagulian as Orthodox priest Toros, and Mikey Madison as Anora in a still from Anora.

Director Sean Baker (standing, in black) on the set of Anora.

Madison in a still from Anora.

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Jacky Cheung and Anita Mui in a still from July Rhapsody. Photo: SCMP

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Lifestyle

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Jon M. Chu’s film career spans genres such as action with GI Joe Retaliation to romance with Crazy Rich Asians and musicals with Wicked


Jon M. Chu’s film career spans genres such as action with GI Joe Retaliation to romance with Crazy Rich Asians and musicals with Wicked.
