Moviefone Editorial

Tag: simon pegg

  • 13 Things You Never Knew About ‘Shaun of the Dead’ on its 15th Anniversary

    13 Things You Never Knew About ‘Shaun of the Dead’ on its 15th Anniversary

    Rogue Pictures

    It’s now been 15 years since “Shaun of the Dead” hit theaters in the UK. That film wound up having a huge impact, kicking off a series of collaborations between Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg and proving to audiences that zombies and humor can go hand in undead hand. Celebrate this important movie milestone with some fun facts you might not know about “Shaun of the Dead.”

    1. Creators Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg decided to collaborate on a zombie movie after discovering a mutual appreciation for the work of director George Romero while working on the British sitcom “Spaced” and in particular an episode style after the “Resident Evil” videogame series that paid equal homage to the master of horror.

    2. Romero in turn was so pleased with “Shaun of the Dead” that he cast Pegg and Wright as zombie extras in 2005’s “Land of the Dead.”

    Universal Pictures

    3. Nick Frost‘s Ed winds up foreshadowing the entire plot of the film (via the names of various cocktails) when he lays out his drinking plans to Shaun in the beginning.

    4. None of the main characters ever have their surname spoken during the course of the film. However, an old DJ ad reveals that Shaun’s last name is “Riley.”

    5. The origin of the zombie plague in the film is never explained, though various radio and TV broadcasts offer theories that reference other popular zombie movies like “Night of the Living Dead” and “28 Days Later.”

    Continental Distributing

    6. The Winchester model 66 used in the film is the same as the one featured in both the original “Night of the Living Dead” and its 1990 remake.

    7. “Shaun of the Dead’s” UK release date was pushed back in order to avoid conflicting with the 2004 “Dawn of the Dead” remake.

    8. The DVD special features offer conflicting information as to whether Lucy Davis‘ character Dianne lives or dies. According to the “Plot Holes” featurette, she survives by hiding in a tree and eventually goes to live with her aunt.

    Rogue Pictures

    9. Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin plays two roles in the film, appearing first as a background zombie and later as himself hawking a product called ZombAid on TV.

    10. “Shaun of the Dead” is the first entry in the “Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy,” which also includes 2007’s “Hot Fuzz” and 2013’s “The World’s End.” The three films are linked by the fact that they each star Pegg and Frost and each feature a reference to a different flavor of Cornetto ice cream.

    Universal Pictures

    11. Many of the storefronts and advertisements seen in the film pay tribute to acclaimed horror directors, including Landis Supermarket (John Landis) and Italian restaurant Fulci’s (Lucio Fulci).

    12. The British comic book magazine “2000AD” featured a short story called “There’s Something About Mary” that takes place a day before the events of the movie and explores how the character Mary became a zombie.

    13. Pegg and Wright briefly considered a vampire-themed sequel called “From Dusk Till Shaun,” an homage to the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez film “From Dusk Till Dawn.”

  • Henry Cavill Had a Hilarious Reaction to ‘Mission: Impossible’ Scene’s Instant Beard Growth

    Henry Cavill Had a Hilarious Reaction to ‘Mission: Impossible’ Scene’s Instant Beard Growth

    Mission: Impossible - Fallout, Henry Cavill
    Paramount Pictures

    The real mission fans have chosen to accept is to obsess over Henry Cavill‘s arm reloading scene in “Mission: Impossible – Fallout.”

    The arm cock move has become a meme, but it’s also being analyzed for possible continuity errors. Is it just a trick of the light or does he 1) grow a beard and 2) grow a shirt pocket within seconds?

    https://twitter.com/masonjar92/status/1024851783137427456

    https://twitter.com/Pupuchie/status/1024134480502632449

    Reporter Jake Hamilton shared a clip of his talk with “M:I-6” stars Henry Cavill and Simon Pegg, asking them both about Henry’s beard growth mystery:

    Reporter: “There is a GIF floating around of you, and it’s the arm cock. But not just that. It looks like in that moment you grow a beard. Have you heard about that?”

    Henry Cavill: “Yeah, yeah. Yes. I’ve seen it as well.”

    Reporter: “Is there a story behind that? Or is it just the lighting, you happen to hit the light the right way?”

    Henry Cavill: “It’s because I punch so hard when reloading my fists that I actually grew a beard in that moment. I made facial hair history.”

    Simon Pegg: “There’s so, so much testosterone at work there. That’s how he gets up every morning, clean shaven. He goes [does arm cock movement]. And then he’s got a beard.”

    Nice. Henry Cavill also made “facial hair history” with MustacheGate, the CGI-erased mustache for his Superman in “Justice League.” That was also due to the magic power of his “Mission: Impossible” beard. Bow to its impact.

    “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” had the best box office debut of the franchise to date, and we’re expecting it to continue to do well this weekend. Check out all of Moviefone’s interviews with the cast and director Christopher McQuarrie.

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  • Watch All Our ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ Interviews Here

    Watch All Our ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ Interviews Here

    Paramount

    “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” is finally here.

    Star Tom Cruise literally broke his ankle making the sixth installment of the franchise, and after seeing the final product, fans will have a better appreciation for how far Cruise goes to keep them entertained.

    Moviefone recently sat down with writer-director Christopher McQuarrie and the cast to discuss how they pulled off one the year’s best movies.

    Exclusive: Christopher McQuarrie Reveals the Secrets of “Fallout”

    The Cast Shares Their Favorite Tom Cruise Stories

    Angela Bassett

    Simon Pegg

    Henry Cavill

    Rebecca Ferguson

    Simon Pegg and Henry Cavil Talk That Crazy Helicopter Chase

  • New ‘Mission: Impossible – Fallout’ Trailer Is an Eye-Popping Stunt Feast

    Say what you will of Tom Cruise, but the guy can do a stunt.

    The actor is well-known for performing much of his own stuntwork (and injuring himself in the process). That dedication really pays off in the new trailer for “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” which is jam-packed with footage of fight scenes, car chases, and of course, Cruise jumping off buildings and dangling from a helicopter. It’s what he does.

    This trailer gives us a bit more insight into Henry Cavill’s character, a deadly CIA operative who is an antagonist to Ethan Hunt. The CIA is called in when dastardly villain Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) escapes.

    The usual suspects are all back, including Simon Pegg as Benji, Ving Rhames as Luther, and Rebecca Ferguson as Ilsa Faust. Alec Baldwin returns as Ethan’s boss, as does Michelle Monaghan as Ethan’s wife. Angela Bassett and Vanessa Kirby join in the fun for the first time.

    “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” opens in theaters July 27.

  • J.J. Abrams Had Different Plan For Rey’s Parents Than ‘Last Jedi’ Revelation

    Maybe Rey’s parents weren’t nobodies after all.

    Or at least, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” director J.J. Abrams didn’t intend them to be. As shown in “The Last Jedi,” Rey (Daisy Ridley) learned the identity of her parents — just two scummy junkers who sold their kid for drinking money. That played into Rian Johnson’s theme that anybody could use the Force and be a hero.

    Johnson has repeatedly said that there was no overarching plan for the new trilogy and that he never was told what to do about Rey’s parentage.

    But on the podcast “Happy Sad Confused,” actor/director Simon Pegg (who played junk boss Unkar Plutt in “Force Awakens”) has revealed that Abrams did have a different plan for Rey.

    “I know what J.J. kind of intended or at least was being chucked around,” Pegg said. “I think that’s kind of been undone slightly by the last one. There was some talk of a relevant lineage for her.”

    Relevant lineage, huh? That should fire up the fans who were disappointed that Rey didn’t turn out to be Luke’s daughter or related to Obi-Wan Kenobi.

    Pegg added, “But I honestly don’t know, and I don’t know if anybody knows. We shall see.”

    It is possible Abrams, who will return to helm “Episode IX,” could undo Johnson’s storytelling choice about Rey’s parents. We shall see in December 2019.

  • Kate Winslet and Helen Mirren Almost Starred in ‘Shaun of the Dead’

    In today’s “Walking Dead”-obsessed world, it seems almost impossible to imagine a time when zombies weren’t dominating pop culture. But back when Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost were teaming up to make rom-zom-com “Shaun of the Dead,” the undead hadn’t been a hot commodity in the film community for quite some time. That later changed in a big way, of course, but in a new oral history timed to the 13th anniversary of the flick’s release, the filmmakers mused about the difficult road they had in getting “Shaun” off the ground — and the big stars that were initially courted to boost the film’s profile.

    Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, co-writer and director Wright, co-writer and star Pegg, and co-star Frost discussed the behind the scenes struggles making the 2004 film, especially with such a bizarre concept and a pair of unknown (at the time) actors as the leads. The production company initially thought that a bigger name should play Frost’s character, Ed, but filmmakers stood firm with their casting choice. And several other key roles, like Shaun’s girlfriend, Liz (eventually played by Kate Ashfield), and his mom, Barbara (Penelope Wilton), were once circled by some pretty famous faces.

    From EW:

    WRIGHT: … Some people just didn’t get [the concept]. I’m not embarrassing her by saying this, because she says the same thing — Penelope Wilton initially passed. Helen Mirren was offered Barbara. She said, “I would only do the movie if I got to play Ed.”

    FROST: She would have been amazing.

    WRIGHT: Kate Winslet was briefly interested in playing Liz.

    PEGG: We had tea with Kate Winslet. She was like, “Yeah, okay — but no.”

    While it’s fun to fantasize about Mirren and Winslet starring in the flick, we think “Shaun” ended up with the perfect ensemble. But if Mirren ever wants to star in a remake as Ed, we’re totally on board.

    [via: Entertainment Weekly]

  • Scotty Makes a New Friend in ‘Star Trek Beyond’ Clip

    Star Trek BeyondMontgomery Scott is boldly going where he’s never gone before.

    In this new clip from “Star Trek Beyond,” Scotty (Simon Pegg) finds himself stranded on a strange planet away from Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto), Uhura (Zoe Saldana), and Bones (Karl Urban). As the trailer showed, the Enterprise crew is forced to abandon ship after a lethal attack by Krall (Idris Elba) and scatters across this planet.

    Scotty meets a mysterious scavenger by the name of Jaylah (Sofia Boutella), who is no friend of Krall. And she’s willing to strike a bargain: If the engineer helps her, she’ll help him find his friends in return.
    The quippy Scott and serious Jaylah could make for an interesting buddy comedy storyline. Certainly, the excellent makeup job and Boutella’s clipped line delivery make Jaylah appear to be an worthy addition to the franchise.

    “Star Trek Beyond” is already shaping up to be intriguing movie. Recently, John Cho teased that Sulu will be revealed to be gay, making him the first LGBT character in the franchise.

    “Star Trek Beyond” opens in theaters July 22.

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  • How Tom Cruise Got Director Hired in 10 Minutes

    If the superstar of a blockbuster franchise wants something, he gets it. So when Tom Cruise called the Hollywood heavy hitters behind “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” with his handpicked selection for its director, he got it. Fast.

    “He left the room and came back 10 minutes later with the phone in his hand and said, ‘Okay, you’re directing the next ‘Mission: Impossible.’ And that was it,” director Christopher McQuarrie tells Made in Hollywood.

    There’s little to wonder why Cruise was eager to have McQuarrie join him for his fifth turn in the action flick. Previously they collaborated on 2012’s “Jack Reacher,” and when McQuarrie was working on the script for 2014’s “Edge of Tomorrow,” of which Cruise starred opposite Emily Blunt, the 53-year-old actor made the suggestion during a creative session one night.

    When McQuarrie agreed, rather casually, to take on role as director, he was surprised that Cruise wasted no time in enlisting him for work. “I figured that that would be a conversation we would have later,” McQuarrie recalls.

    “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation,” co-starring Alec Baldwin, Rebecca Fergusson, Simon Pegg and Jeremy Renner opened last Friday. Watch the trailer below.

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  • Why Tom Cruise’s Driving Made Simon Pegg Want to Scream

    As the resident intelligence analyst in the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, Simon Pegg rarely has to step in harm’s way. But in “Rogue Nation,” the fifth sequel, the British star found himself in a seemingly precarious high-speed car chase sequence.

    Luckily, with adrenalin junkie Tom Cruise behind the wheel, Pegg had nothing to fear.

    “He’s an extraordinary driver—as good if not better than anybody else on the driving team for the stunt crew,” Pegg tells Made in Hollywood. “Tom did all the driving and we are driving at those speeds.”

    Pegg insists that although he appears to be scared out of his wits in the scene, in truth it was spine tingling.

    “I wasn’t terrified in that I thought I was going to die, but it was like being on a roller coaster—which you always scream on,” he explains, clarifying, “a very safe roller coaster. It was brilliant fun.”

    “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” hit theaters Friday. Watch the trailer below.

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  • Tom Cruise Begins Work on Sixth ‘Mission: Impossible’

    Tom Cruise and Jon Stewart
    Tom Cruise and Jon Stewart

    Apparently clinging to an airplane, getting beat up and shot at, briefly dying underwater and enduring the wrath Alec Baldwin just wasn’t enough for Ethan Hunt to cash out his 401k and drift off into a peaceful retirement.

    Another “Mission: Impossible” movie is on the way.

    “We’re starting to work on it now,” producer-star Tom Cruise told Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show” on Tuesday night (video below). “We’ll probably start shooting it next summer.”

    The next film will mark the sixth installment in the action franchise, which started in 1996 and is based on a 1960s TV series.

    “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation” — opens Friday with Cruise’s Impossible Missions Force being dismantled by the U.S. government but carrying on anyway to save the world. It co-stars Baldwin, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Jeremy Renner and Ving Rhames.

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