Fans were over the moon when Oscar-winning actress Anne Hathaway confirmed that “The Princess Diaries 3” is currently in the works. What’s even more exciting is that the upcoming film will be directed by Malaysian-born filmmaker Adele Lim, who previously worked as a screenwriter on the critically acclaimed 2018 film “Crazy Rich Asians.”
In addition to these projects, she also contributed as a writer for Disney’s “Raya and the Last Dragon.” With all the attention now on Adele, it’s only natural for people to be curious about how she got her start in Hollywood. Without further ado, here’s what we know about her background:
Adele grew up in Petaling Jaya and attended the prestigious all-girls secondary school, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Sri Aman. Alongside her parents, she was surrounded by family members, including her grandparents, uncles, and aunts, in the household where she lived. “My grandmother and my mother were very successful career women and also very active in the community, so there were always church people, community people, and friends around. There was always somebody cooking or buying food. My whole family is in Malaysia. I’ve got a lot of Malaysian pride,” she once told Tatler Asia.
The filmmaker began writing during her primary school years, presenting her stories for classes or submitting them for contests. After honing her skills, she later became the editor of SMK Sri Aman’s yearbook, which eventually led to her having her own weekly column in The Star newspaper. “I think I’m one of those very lucky people who just knew what I wanted to do from a very early age,” she said. With all that being said, the screenwriter did have a backup plan in case her writing career was short-lived. She revealed that she once considered becoming a dancer and even danced for singer Ning Baizura. While the gig was fun, it just wasn’t her calling.
Adele then completed two years of her American Transfer Program at KDU College Damansara Utama before moving to the United States, where she graduated with a degree in Film/TV from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. During her time in the US, Adele took on various side hustles and worked her way onto the writers’ team for “Xena: Warrior Princess” in 2000. While she gained valuable experience, she sadly struggled to bond with her colleagues, as she was always the only female and woman of colour in the team.
Thankfully, her then-boyfriend and circle of friends supported her through her challenges, particularly in expanding her knowledge of American TV and films. After two decades in the industry, working on shows like “Digimon” (English Dub), “One Tree Hill”, and “Life on Mars”, Adele rose to the position of showrunner and developed pilots for well-known studios. Her first project as showrunner was for CW’s “Star-Crossed,” which, unfortunately, was cancelled after one season. However, this setback was not the end of the world; she eventually met director John Chu while collaborating on an unreleased project. He hired her as one of the writers for “Crazy Rich Asians,” believing the script needed more authenticity.
Shortly after the film’s success, Adele was recruited by Disney to work on “Raya and the Last Dragon”, which later earned an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature. In 2023, the Malaysian-born producer made her directorial debut with “Joyride”. Her path to success was not always smooth sailing though. Acknowledging her worth, Adele was one of the 11,500 screenwriters who participated in the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike over a labour dispute with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
Fast forward to 2024, Variety recently reported that Adele would serve as the director for the much-anticipated third instalment of the “Princess Diaries” franchise. The 49-year-old spoke up on landing this gig, saying, “As a die-hard fan of the original ‘Princess Diaries’, I’m beyond excited to be a part of bringing the third iteration of this beloved franchise to life. We look forward to celebrating its core tenants of female power, joy and mentorship with audiences worldwide.”
We’d like to congratulate Adele Lim on her success in filmmaking and may she continue to make Malaysia proud for future projects.
Sources: TatlerAsia, SCMP, TheStar, Variety
