Simon Pegg has played a wide variety of roles since his first in the British sitcom Spaced, which he co-wrote. From the straight-man cop in Hot Fuzz, to the reluctant but reliable Benji in the Mission Impossible films and the indomitable Scottie in the J.J. Abram’s Star Trek series, Pegg’s amazing ability to portray the relatable everyman makes his characters memorable and beloved. Pegg unabashedly admits to being both a geek and a nerd. He’s had the good fortune of playing characters in his three favorite geekdoms: Doctor Who, Star Trek, and Star Wars. Pegg joined fans at the “Simon Pegg: All Missions Possible” panel Saturday at 2PM in the Marriott Atrium Ballroom. Moderator Brian Richardson gave the attendees their mission: to formulate interesting questions. Mission accepted.
Pegg began by happily declaring, “My first Dragon Con! Yeah!” Asked about the different accents he’s had to use for roles, he thinks it’s much easier to use his own (and he’s been told it makes him sound intelligent, too, a nice bonus). The Scottish accent is easy, since his wife is Scottish and he’s half, but he thinks the American accent is difficult. He said people seem to be “weirded out” when he uses it. “You chew your vowels a lot!”
Reminiscing about filming Star Trek, Pegg spoke of how close the actors became as a group. They used to hang out in Vancouver and “had some crazy nights.” He ended up looking out for the younger actors. A big moment for him was walking onto the bridge of the Enterprise as Mr. Scott. “Look at this!” he remembers thinking. Another awesome experience was being able to act with Leonard Nimoy. “That’s ****’n Spock!” Pegg told himself. “He’s talking to me!”
Although he’d met James Doohan before playing Scotty, Pegg tried to make the role his own while also treating it with respect. He approached it by putting himself into the mindset of a starship engineer, to be the engineer rather than trying to be Doohan’s version. Pegg also spoke about writing the script for the Star Trek Beyond. When he was asked to write it, he remembered feeling like “the world was on my shoulders.” In the first two movies, the crew never left our solar system, so Pegg thought, “Let’s get them out there” on a five-year mission, like the original series.
Pegg’s role as Benji Dunn began with a cameo in Mission: Impossible III. He doesn’t think J.J. Abrams intended to change the tone of the movies, but afterward, he got a call from Abrams, who asked what Pegg thought about Benji becoming an agent. Pegg thinks Benji’s success came from him being a regular person, one of “us,” which made him relatable to the audience. “The whole thing grew organically over time…Benji represents the humanity [of the films].”
Surprisingly, when they shoot a Mission Impossible film, they usually start with the set piece, like driving the motorcycle off the cliff, and often figure out the dialogue on the spot. Pegg would usually get the script right before filming an action scene. In fact, he was being fed lines while steering a boat down a canal, and he was wondering why Benji would be saying those things.
Pegg spoke fondly of the Three Flavors Cornetto trilogy, and noted that they had picked the genre first, using a wouldn’t-it-be-funny-if concept. He said he and co-writer/director Edgar Wright wouldn’t do another Cornetto movie, though. “We might make a drama next.” Pegg feels the trilogy had a beginning (Shaun of the Dead), middle (Hot Fuzz), and end (The World’s End). A lot of Shaun of the Dead came from Pegg and his good friend Nick Frost talking at a pub one time about what they’d do if a zombie apocalypse happed. They decided the pub would be the perfect spot to retreat to and defend.
Asked about the advice he’d given Frost about standup comedy, Pegg said, “Audiences smell fear like sharks smell blood, so be confident.” At the time, Pegg recalled with a laugh, he’d had “a whole two years of experience” to share. Will he make another movie with Frost? “As soon as Wright is clear,” he said. “It’s been ten years…time for another film.” The crowd seconded the idea with loud cheers of approval.
When requested, Pegg related the story of how he and Frost met. Pegg’s girlfriend at the time had met Frost at the restaurant where they worked. She told Pegg that Frost was really funny and wanted to be a standup comic. She brought him to meet Pegg, who had “two whole years” of experience to share. Pegg realized he was “only with this girl to meet [Frost].” But it was later, while eating curry at a restaurant with Frost, that true love struck. Pegg asked Frost to pass the salt. Frost scooted it slowly across the table while making silly beeping noises. “You complete me!” Pegg declared. Because of Frost’s natural funniness, Pegg asked him to be in the sitcom, Spaced, which propelled Frost into becoming an actor and marked the beginning of their collaborations.
When asked if he’d been given any advice about coming to Dragon Con, Pegg said, “Nick [Frost] said it was amazing.” Last night, when Pegg stepped out on the street, there were so many people in costumes, he felt as if he’d just entered a convention floor. He passed someone wearing a Shaun of the Dead costume. Pegg had sunglasses on, and thought, “If you only knew…” as he walked by. In closing, Pegg said that the “success…comes from the enjoyment of making [a] film…It’s a bonus if the film does well.” He added that he’s never had a truly bad experience. “[It’s] a fun thing to do…[to] dress up and playact.” Judging by the applause and cheering as he exited the stage, we all hope he’ll be acting for a long time to come.
