Coldplay Almost Didn’t Approve the Mandarin Cover of "Yellow" In "Crazy Rich Asians"

They were worried it would seem like a racial slur.

Crazy Rich Asians is the first mainstream American movie to feature an all-Asian cast in 25 years, a fact that is both astounding and unsurprising given the glacial pace of diverse casting in Hollywood.

Though one single movie can’t make up for decades of whitewashing, Crazy Rich Asians is certainly doing its darndest. Not only does the adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s book star Constance Wu, Michelle Yeoh, Harry Golding, Ken Jeong and Awkwafina, among other greats, but it’s also directed by Chinese-American filmmaker Jon M. Chu.

And, to top it all off, it ends with a Mandarin cover of Coldplay’s weepy classic "Yellow", performed by Chinese-American former The Voice contestant Katherine Ho.

Speaking to Vulture, Chu said he had to convince both Warner Bros. (the film’s studio) and Coldplay to approve the cover, as they were both nervous of the racist connotations tied to the word "Yellow".

"[Warner Bros.] were like,'Whoa, we can’t do that, what do you think people will say?' And I told them, 'Well, a white director couldn’t do it,'" he tells Vulture.

Coldplay, however, initially rejected Chu’s request, perhaps reflecting on the criticisms of appropriation they’ve received throughout their career (coughPrincessofChinacough).

That is, until they received a heartfelt letter from the filmmaker, who said "['Yellow'] was an incredible image of attraction and aspiration that made me rethink my own self-image."

Within the hour, Coldplay reportedly gave their approval.

You can see the song on the big screen when Crazy Rich Asians arrives in Australian cinemas 30 August. It’s set to open in America over this weekend and dominate the box office.