For the most part, Simon Pegg has traversed the comfortable milieu of genre films. Making his mark with Edgar Wright and Nick Frost on their Cornetto films, he’s dipped into the blockbuster world with the “Star Trek,” “Tintin” and “Mission: Impossible” franchises, while doing one off stuff like “Fantastic Fear Or Everything” or “Burke And Hare” that are still very much in his wheelhouse. However, he has taken strides before into more mainstream, less fantastical fare with stuff like “How to Lose Friends & Alienate People” and “Run Fatboy Run,” but yeah, they weren’t that successful. But he’ll give it another go.
In the pages of the most recent issue of Empire, it’s revealed in a profile of Pegg that he’s attached to star in “Man Up.” Penned by Tess Morris, the script made the 2011 Brit List, there are few details on it except that it’s a romantic comedy, but we’re guessing there won’t be any zombies or magic or spaceships in this. And while we’ll have to wait on a logline, Pegg is in good hands, as Morris has made a name for herself penning the feature “Beer Goggles,” directed by David Mackenzie (“Young Adam,” “Perfect Sense“) and working on TV, including shows “My Family” and “Charlie Ferrari.”
Moreover, the project is set up over at Big Talk (the Cornetto movies, “Sightseers,” “Attack The Block” and more) so it will be among familiar hands who know how to deliver smart and original material. “It’s a film with no visual effects!” producer Nira Park said. “I like it when people talk on a set.” So it looks like it might be a bit of change for everyone involved.
