Eleanor Sung-Young

Eleanor Sung-Young

3
    Crazy Rich Asians
Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

Character Analysis

(Avoiding Spoilers)

Living... in a palatial mansion in Singapore. Along with her mother-in-law, she’s an esteemed matriarch of the Youngs, one of Singapore’s wealthiest, most influential families.

Profession... managing her family’s household. Eleanor studied law at Cambridge, but withdrew from the university when she married her husband Philip Young. She decided to focus on raising a family and helping her husband run his business. She knows younger generations might consider her life old-fashioned, but she sees her role as a privilege.

Interests... reading with her Bible study group, making dumplings, and playing mahjong.

Relationship Status... married. Eleanor’s husband is frequently away on business and she runs their household in his stead.

Challenge… protecting her son by shaping his life. The handsome, Oxford-educated Nick Young is Eleanor’s pride and joy, as well as the future heir to the Young Corporation. Eleanor believes it’s time for Nick to return home, settle down with a suitable marital match, and take over the company so her husband can retire. Nick, however, has other ideas. He’s happy with his life in America and is seriously dating an American economics professor named Rachel Chu. Eleanor doesn’t believe Rachel has the pedigree—or, more importantly, the self-sacrificing instinct—to be a suitable wife for Nick. So she sets out to save Nick from himself by forcing Rachel out of the picture.

Personality... meticulous. There’s no detail too small for Eleanor to micromanage. Even during a massive cocktail party, you’ll find her in the kitchen making sure every dish is perfectly cooked. She has a bone dry wit and an icy sophistication. She can be incredibly judgmental, and often comes across as cold. Eleanor values tradition and duty above all else. She believes that serving the good of one’s family is more important than personal happiness. As she tells Rachel, “It’s nice you appreciate this house and us being here together wrapping dumplings, but all this doesn’t just happen. It’s because we know to put family first, instead of chasing one’s passion.” Eleanor had her own difficult journey to becoming a valued member of the Young family, but that only makes her more skeptical of outsiders.

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