Simon Pegg says that he and Edgar Wright would be “incensed” if Universal Pictures ever tries to remake Shaun of the Dead.
In 2004, Pegg starred in the horror zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead, which was directed by Wright. The film is the first entry in Wright’s Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, which also includes 2007’s Hot Fuzz and 2013’s The World’s End. Pegg played a role in all three movies.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Pegg was asked if a sequel to Shaun of the Dead could ever happen.
“I mean, Universal owns it,” he answered. “If they choose to reboot it, then they can if they want I guess. Although Edgar and I would be incensed.”
Why doesn’t Simon Pegg want Shaun of the Dead to be rebooted?
When asked why, Pegg explained how Shaun of the Dead is “incredibly personal.” He said, “There’s so much of our own heart and soul in that film. If someone was to reboot it, it would be a cynical and exploitative exercise. I would hope that people are in love with our Shaun enough to resist a reboot. Gary King [Pegg’s character in The World’s End] as well, that was a lot about my own alcoholism. A really personal film.”
When asked specifically if a sequel to Shaun of the Dead could work, Pegg said, “I don’t think so. I’m a big fan of sequels. Some of my favorite films are sequels: Empire Strikes Back, Aliens. I’m in a couple of film franchises which repeat and reboot, and it’s not that I decry sequels in any way, but I think some stories end. Some stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. If you were to see Shaun again, if the zombies came back, there’s just not a story to tell it.”
Pegg did note that he and Wright are now working on something new together.
“Since Shaun of the Dead, our lives have changed dramatically. We’re both busy into the distant future. The biggest challenge that we have right now is finding a moment to get together and spend six, seven weeks, to get our first draft out and come up with the idea. But we’re constantly looking for that. Edgar came over to my house last year and stayed for the week, and we just sort of talked about films and what we want to do next. We just need the time to do it. So it really is a question of when, not if.”
