30 Lesser Known Facts Every Fan Should Know About Edgar Wright

Edgar Howard Wright, an English director, screenwriter, producer, and actor, is famous for his fast action style editing, usually of mundane tasks, including whip pans and crash zooms. His characters are often known to share his love of action movies and video games. Here are some interesting facts about the director:

1. He is famous for asking for many takes while filming, and is often referred to as a "perfectionist" by his frequent collaborator Simon Pegg.
2. In July 2017, it was reported that he was approached by Sony officials for a sequel to his hit movie "Baby Driver," and that he was interested in developing a "Baby Driver 2."
3. Wright cites Sam Raimi's "Evil Dead II" and the Coen brothers' "Raising Arizona" to be the films that made him want to be a director. When he met Raimi and told him so, Raimi joked to him, "Don't say that, you make me feel old."
4. His most popular movie "Shaun of the Dead" is often mistaken to be his first movie, though that is not the case. Nearly a decade earlier, he first took "A Fistful of Fingers," to Cannes,, before premiering it at the Prince Charles Cinema in 1995.
5. While working on "Mash and Peas," he worked on various BBC programs like "Is It Bill Bailey" and "Alexei Sayle's Merry-Go-Round."
6. In an effort to make the script of "Baby Driver," even more authentic as an American crime movie," he met and considered an ex-convict Joe Loya, as a resource. Loya is the author of the book "The Man Who Outgrew His Prison Cell."
7. In an interview with journalist and author Robert K. Elder for "The Film That Changed My Life," Wright attributes his edgy and comedic style to his love for "An American Werewolf in London."
8. In the year 2007, he directed a fake trailer insert for Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's "Grindhouse," called "Don't." It was a plotless trailer that mocked horror clichés, with lines such as, "If you... are thinking... of going ... into... this... house... DON'T!"
9. Wright was not satisfied with the final outcome of his first movie "A Fistful of Fingers." However, it was his work in that movie that garnered him the attention of attention of comedians Matt Lucas and David Walliams.
10. He claims his favorite band to be Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. Several songs from Blue Explosion are featured in his movie "Hot Fuzz," while the band has a song specifically written for the said movie.
11. Writers Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, asked Wright to direct their sitcom "Spaced" for Channel 4, fondly remembering working with him on the 1996 comedy "Asylum."
12. While writing the script of "Hot Fuzz," he called his mother and said "I want you to write down all the stories that you heard about our town and give it to me." As a result, he got a fifty page document titled "Spooky Doings."
13. Wright's filming career started in the late 1980s when he directed many short films, with his Super-8 camera.
14. While writing the script of "Baby Driver," sometimes, he used to send the pages to Joe Loya, an ex-convict and say "Does this sound kind of real." Wright claimed that he was well aware of being an English and writing an American crime film, so though it would be better to get a nod from someone who had been inside for ten years.
15. In December 2007, he began guest programming at repertory theater the New Beverly Cinema following a sold-out screening of his films. He curated a two-week series of his favorite films dubbed "The Wright Stuff," concluding the festival with a double-bill of "Evil Dead II" and "Raising Arizona."
16. His first movie "A Fistful of Fingers," which was a low budget independent spoof, that had a very limited theatrical release was picked up for broadcast on the British satellite TV channel Sky Movies.
17. Fellow Director Garth Jennings is a close friend of Wright, and has had various cameo roles in his movies "Shaun of the Dead," "Hot Fuzz," and "The World's End." He had also made some guest appearances in certain Jennings movie like "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," "Son of Rambow" and "Sing."
18. Wright's famous "The Three Flavors Cornetto Trilogy" was actually constructed because of a joke. The said joke happened when a witty interviewer asked Wright in an interview if the ice cream cone brand was his theme of a trilogy, referring to the ice cream featured in "Shaun of the Dead," and "Hot Fuzz." He instantly replied that it's "Three Flavors Cornetto Trilogy," like Krzysztof Kieslowski’s "Three Colors trilogy." Eventually, they had to follow through with this joke.
19. Comedians Matt Lucas and David Walliams were so much inspired with his work in his first movie "A Fistful of Fingers," that they chose him to direct their "Mash and Peas," produced by Paramount Comedy Channel.
20. For his most popular movie "Baby Driver," Wright reportedly started writing the script in the year 2007. He is said to have had the idea even long before that. "Baby Driver" is Wright's first solo script since his first movie "A Fistful of Fingers," in 1995.
21. He directed an un-credited single shot of the sequence on the Klingon home planet of Kronos in the movie "Star Trek Into Darkness." He posted a picture showing him behind a clapboard next to an IMAX camera on the set.
22. In the year 2002, he made guest appearances as a scientist and a technician named Eddie Yorque during both series of "Look Around You ."
23. Wright, while in Wells, Somerset, actually worked at the supermarket shown in the film "Hot Fuzz." His boss at the time is said to have been the inspiration for the over-the-top character of Simon Skinner.
24. He along with Joe Cornish, have been developing a lie-action film based on the Marvel Comics superhero Ant-Man, since 2006. It was initially hired as the director of the Marvel movie, but later exited from the project due to creative differences. In an interview, he claimed that he was unhappy and quit from the movie when Marvel wanted him to write a new script.
25. Initially, he shot his movies with a Super-8 camera, which was a gift from one of his family member. Later, he switched to Video-8 camcoder, which he won in a competition on "Going Live," a famous TV program.
26. He along with Simon Pegg made a cameo appearance in director George A. Romero's fourth zombie opus "Land of the Dead." They appear as a duo of chain-clad zombies in a photo booth.
27. In the movie "Hot Fuzz," his mother Lesley Wright along with Simon Pegg's mother Gillian Rosemary Smith, appeared as the village-of-the-year judges at the end of the film.
28. He has directed two videos "Summer" and "Bastardo" for his ex-girlfriend Charlotte Hatherley. Wright has also directed promos for 80s Matchbox B-Line Disaster, Mint Royale and The Bluetones.
29. From 1992 to 1994, Wright attended the Bournemouth and Poole College of Art, which is currently Arts University Bournemouth. He received an ND in Audio-Visual Design.
30. In the year 2002, he asked Simon Pegg to turn down the offer for a role in 2002 "Dog Soldiers," as he wanted Pegg's first horror movie to be "Shaun of the Dead."
31. Edgar Wright Net Worth: $10 Million