Scott Pilgrim Takes Off on Netflix is full of little (and big) nods and winks to the various iterations of Scott Pilgrim. In Episode 4, “Whatever,” we get one of the biggest, weirdest swings the anime show makes when we’re introduced to a film production of… Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life. Oh, and director Edgar Wrong.
Who is Edgar Wrong? And who voices Edgar Wrong on Scott Pilgrim Takes Off? The logical choice would be Edgar Wright, the director of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. But not only does Edgar Wright not voice Edgar Wrong… Despite being an Executive Producer on the production, showrunners Bryan Lee O’Malley and BenDavid Grabinski never asked him.
“What’s funny about that is Bryan texted me and pitched ‘Edgar Left,'” Wright told The Hollywood Reporter in a recent interview. “And I said, ‘It should be Edgar Wrong.’ Edgar Left and Edgar Wrong were two very easy nicknames at school, so I was happy to have provided both of those names, based on things that I’d been called.”
So if Edgar Wright doesn’t voice Edgar Wrong, who does? It’s Canadian royalty Kevin McDonald, of the sketch comedy troupe Kids in the Hall. McDonald was not previously in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, fyi. As mentioned, McDonald was the production’s choice, not Wright.
“I was never asked, actually,” Wright continued. “He does look like me, but he has the voice of Kevin McDonald from Kids in the Hall. And because I’m a big Kids in the Hall fan, I was very flattered that he was the person playing me.”
Edgar Wrong On Scott Pilgrim Takes Off Is Just One Of Many Edgar Wright Easter Eggs
Despite Wright’s exclusion, “Edgar Wrong” is just one of the voice cameos and Easter eggs nodding to his influence on Scott Pilgrim in the episode. On the same clapboard that reveals the name “Edgar Wrong” — the character is simply referred to as “The Director” in the credits — is listed Jan De Pope as Director of Photography. That’s a combination of Bill Pope, Wright’s frequent DP, who shot Scott Pilgrim vs. The World; and Jan de Bont, the director of Speed, for no conceivable reason I can figure out other than that, presumably, O’Malley and Grabinski thought it was funny.
And in the same episode, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost show up as the voice of two security guards. They’re also frequent collaborators of Wright, and also were not in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. So perhaps this was wrighting previous wrongs. Sorry: righting. They also show up in the next episode eating Cornettos, the tri-flavored ice cream cone treats that semi-inspired a trilogy of films Wright, Pegg and Frost worked on (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World’s End).
So there you go! Kevin McDonald voices Edgar Wrong on Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Edgar Wright is fine with it.
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