“Crazy Rich Asians” actor Harry Shum Jr. and Olympic medalists Maia and Alex Shibutani bought out theaters in support of “Searching,” a hyper-modern thriller starring “Star Trek” alumnus John Cho.
Directed by Aneesh Chaganty, “Searching” revolves around David Kim’s (John Cho) quest to find his missing teenage daughter, Margot (Michelle La), through digital footprints left in her laptop.
Following the release of “Crazy Rich Asians” and “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” “Searching” completes what the internet is calling #AsianAugust.
“Let’s keep the momentum going,” Shum wrote as he announced his purchase with WeWork Chief Product Officer Shiva Rajamaran on Twitter.
Let’s keep the momentum going. Linked up with the good man @shivar and bought out a theater for @JohnTheCho film “Searching” at Century City 15 tomorrow (Sat) Get tickets here: https://t.co/tbBS5i7f8E
Give @SearchingMovie a #GoldOpen Ticket pickup is first-come, first-serve.— Harry Shum Jr (@HarryShumJr) August 24, 2018
Olympic ice dancers Maia and Alex Shibutani, also known as the Shibutani Siblings, also purchased a theater with Twitch co-founder Kevin Lin.
LA! @MaiaShibutani and I partnered with @kevinlin to open a theater so you can see #SearchingMovie starring @JohnTheCho for free!
Sign up to reserve your spot!
Tickets are first come first serve. 🎟AMC Century City – Aug. 26 @ 5pmhttps://t.co/S6sM8moBa7 #GoldOpen pic.twitter.com/UrCSYIzfTT
— Alex Shibutani (@AlexShibutani) August 24, 2018
The siblings also took to Instagram to promote the movie.
Shum described the film as “inventive” and that its first five minutes “had me in my feelings.”
The first 5 minutes of #Searching had me in my feelings. Wow. What an inventive film that had me on the edge of my 💺 the entire time. Wonderful work @aneeshchaganty @JohnTheCho and company! Must see!
— Harry Shum Jr (@HarryShumJr) August 26, 2018
Cho thanked Shum and the Shibutanis for their support.
“Crazy Rich Asians” star Henry Golding and director John M. Chu had also bought out theaters for “Searching.”
In response, Chaganty expressed gratitude to the Asian-American community.
“Absolutely, categorically humbled by the amount of outreach and generosity from the Asian-American community to give Searching a #GoldOpen. This is so cool.”
Absolutely, categorically humbled by the amount of outreach and generosity from the Asian-American community to give Searching a #GoldOpen. This is so cool.
— Aneesh Chaganty (@aneeshchaganty) August 24, 2018
If you are interested in purchasing tickets to participate in a #GoldOpening, visit Fandango to purchase fewer than 30 tickets or complete this Google form to purchase more than 30 tickets.
Feature Image via Instagram / @harryshumjr (Left) and @shibsibs (Right)
