2017–present: Film breakthrough and stage work
In 2017, she appeared in the Hulu anthology series, Dimension 404, and was included on the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. In February 2017, Wu was cast as the female lead in Jon M. Chu's adaptation of Crazy Rich Asians, based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Kevin Kwan. The film was released in the United States and Canada on August 15, 2018, by Warner Bros., and was the first major Hollywood studio film to feature an all-Asian cast since 1993's The Joy Luck Club. The film was a critical and commercial success, and emerged as the highest-grossing romantic comedy in a decade, grossing over $238 million. Wu received critical acclaim for her performance and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Satellite Award, two Critics' Choice Movie Awards, and two NAACP Image Awards. She is the first Asian woman in over 40 years to be nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, and the fourth-ever female Asian nominee. Wu is signed on to reprise her role as Rachel Chu in both sequels to Crazy Rich Asians titled China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, which were originally set for back-to-back filming in 2020, although production on them has not yet begun.
In November 2018, Wu starred in a short animated film Crow: The Legend as Skunk. The following year, the actress starred alongside Jennifer Lopez in the crime comedy film Hustlers, which follows a group of former strippers in Manhattan who rob wealthy men. Wu worked at a strip club undercover to prepare for the role. The film opened on September 13, 2019, and became a box office success, grossing over $157 million worldwide and receiving positive reviews from critics. Also in 2019, Wu starred in the independent drama film I Was a Simple Man. In June 2019, it was announced that Wu would play the lead role in a film titled Goodbye Vitamin, based on the debut novel of Rachel Khong. The film will be distributed by Universal Pictures and Wu will serve as an executive producer on the film.
In March 2021, Wu was cast in the Amazon Prime thriller series The Terminal List. More recently, she signed a first look TV deal with Entertainment One. She plays Mrs. Primm in the new movie Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, which was released in theaters October 7, 2022. In late 2022, she starred in the U.S. debut of the play 2:22 A Ghost Story at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles. In 2023, she had a recurring voice role as Daphne Blake in the Max animated series Velma created by Mindy Kaling. That same year she acted in the horror comedy rock musical Little Shop of Horrors opposite Corbin Bleu off Broadway . In 2024 she acted in the drama film The Friend alongside Naomi Watts and Bill Murray. On August 26, 2024, it was announced that Wu has joined the cast of Shit. Meet. Fan. alongside Neil Patrick Harris, Jane Krakowski, and Debra Messing in an off Broadway play written and directed by Robert O'Hara.
In October 2024, Wu was announced as a producer for a potential limited series based upon R. F. Kuang's 2023 novel Yellowface that had been optioned by Lionsgate Television. In December 2025, she was a guest narrator at Disney's Candlelight Processional at Walt Disney World.
