Edgar Wright is an English director, screenwriter, producer, and actor best known for devising and directing the British comedy series ‘Asylum’ during the mid-1990s. During the beginning of his career, he wrote and directed several popular short films, including “I Want to Get into the Movies,” “Rolf Harris Saves the World,” “Dead Right,” and “Don’t.” In the late 1990s, he worked with actors Simon John Pegg and Nicholas John Frost to create the British sitcom Spaced. When directing the horror comedy “Shaun of the Dead,” he reunited with the same actors. Wright began working on feature films as a scriptwriter, producer, and most importantly, as a director, following a fruitful career as a director of television and short films. He has directed several fantasy, science fiction, and horror-themed comedies. He co-wrote, co-produced, directed, and acted in the 2013 science fiction comedy film ‘The World’s End’. He also wrote the screenplay for the popular Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film Ant-Man. Baby Driver earned Wright the ‘Oglethorpe Award for Excellence in Georgia Cinema’ from the Georgia Film Critics Association for his work in 2018.
Youth and Early Life
Edgar Wright was born on April 18, 1974, in Poole, Dorset, to Lesley Wright and Chris Wright. His brother’s name is Oscar Wright, and he is an artist. Wright grew up in Somerset with his brother and attended The Blue School in Wells. In 1994, he graduated from Arts University Bournemouth with a National Diploma (ND) in audio-visual design.
In the late 1980s, as a young child, he used the Super-8 camera he received as a gift from a relative to create numerous short films. Later on, he won his first Video-8 camcorder on the television program ‘Going Live’ and used it to create comedic short films such as ‘Dead Right’.
Edgar Wright’s Career
Edgar Wright’s first feature film, an independent parody of the West titled “A Fistful of Fingers,” was produced with a very limited budget in 1995. British comedians David Edward Williams and Matthew Richard Lucas took notice of it. In 1996, they hired Wright to direct their sketch comedy program ‘Mash and Peas for the Paramount Comedy channel.
Then, he directed the British comedy series ‘Asylum’, whose plot revolved around a mental institution. In 1996, the program ran for a single season consisting of six episodes. Wright completed three projects in 1998: “Alexei Sayle’s Merry-Go-Round,” “Is It Bill Bailey?” and “French and Saunders.” He directed one episode of the third comedy series while directing six episodes of the first two.
In 1998, actor Simon Pegg and actress Tallulah Jessica Elina Hynes (also known as Jessica Stevenson) were planning their Channel 4 sitcom ‘Spaced’. They decided to hire Wright as the director, and Wright accepted the position without hesitation. The premiere of ‘Spaced’ in 1999 was a significant success. In 2000 and 2002, Wright was nominated twice for the Situation Comedy Award at the BAFTAs.
In 1999, he also directed the six-episode British television comedy series Sir Bernard’s Stately Homes. ‘Murder Most Horrid’ episode ‘Confessions of a Murderer’ was also directed by him. In 2004, Wright and Simon Pegg worked together again on the comedy horror film “Shaun of the Dead.” Pegg co-wrote and acted in the film, while Wright co-wrote and directed the screenplay. Pegg portrayed Shaun, a Londoner who becomes entangled in the “zombie apocalypse” Nick Frost also appeared in the film as ‘Ed’.
Wright and Pegg decided to collaborate on “The Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy” beginning with “Shaun of the Dead.” The next film was “Hot Fuzz,” an action comedy in which Simon Pegg and Nick Frost portrayed two detectives investigating a mysterious homicide. The film was directed and written by Wright, and it was co-produced by Nira Park, Tim Bevan, and Eric Fellner.
The 2010 comedy film ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’ was directed by Edgar Wright and starred Michael Cera, Chris Evans, Anna Kendrick, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Wright was awarded the Best Director Empire Award.
In 2013, Wright served as director, writer, actor, and executive producer for ‘The World’s End,’ the final installment of ‘The Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy’. Based on a group of companions who discover an alien invasion, this movie was created. Pegg and Frost, along with Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman, and Rosamund Pike, are old acquaintances.
Wright was slated to direct the live-action superhero film ‘Ant-Man’ for Marvel. However, creative differences with the studio prevented him from directing the film. Wright remained attributed for the script. Marvel supplanted him as the film’s director with Peyton Reed. Adam McKay and Paul Rudd rewrote the original script written by Wright.
In 2017, Wright directed the action-thriller ‘Baby Driver’ starring Kevin Spacey, Ansel Elgort, Jon Hamm, Lily James, and Jamie Foxx. He also wrote the screenplay and co-produced the film, which cost $34 million to produce. The film’s worldwide gross was $226 million, and it received positive reviews.
Edgar’s Major Opera
After working with Edgar Wright in ‘Asylum’, Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson decided to employ Wright for their own comedy show ‘Spaced’. Wright’s work on ‘Spaced’ introduced new dynamics to the comedy show genre. He added sci-fi and horror elements to the comedy program, making it distinctive. He received two nominations for the BAFTA Awards.
The first installment of “The Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy” was “Shaun of the Dead,” a film about an undead apocalypse. Wright both wrote the script and directed the film. In 2004, he won the British Independent Film Award and the Bram Stoker Award for Best Screenplay. Additionally, he was nominated for numerous other accolades, including the BAFTA Award for Best British Film.
Edgar’s Personal Life
Between 2009 and 2013, Edgar Wright was dating actress Anna Kendrick. The couple met on the set of ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’ and were frequently spotted together while courting. Wright is close acquaintances with actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, with whom he has collaborated on numerous films. Additionally, he is a close associate of writer-director Quentin Tarantino.
Estimated Net Worth
Edgar Wright has a net worth of $20 million as an English director, actor, screenwriter, and producer. Edgar Wright is well-known for his fast-paced and frequently satirical genre films, including “Shaun of the Dead,” “Hot Fuzz,” “The World’s End,” “Baby Driver,” and “Last Night in Soho.”