Simon John Pegg (néBeckingham; born 14 February 1970) is an English actor, comedian and screenwriter. He came to prominence in the UK as the co-creator of theChannel 4 sitcomSpaced (1999–2001), directed byEdgar Wright. He and Wright co-wrote the filmsShaun of the Dead (2004),Hot Fuzz (2007), andThe World's End (2013), known collectively as theThree Flavours Cornetto trilogy, all of which saw Wright directing and Pegg starring alongsideNick Frost. Pegg and Frost also wrote and starred in the sci-fi comedy filmPaul (2011).
Simon John Pegg was born Simon John Beckingham[1][2] on 14 February 1970[3] inBrockworth, Gloucestershire;[4][5] he is the son of Gillian Rosemary (née Smith), a former civil servant, and John Henry Beckingham, ajazz musician and keyboard salesman.[6] His parents divorced when he was seven, and he took on his stepfather's surname, Pegg, after his mother remarried.[1][2] His brother, Mike (who starred in the 2020 filmThe Host[7]), still uses Beckingham as his surname. He attended Castle Hill Primary School,[8]Brockworth Comprehensive Secondary School,[8] andThe King's School, Gloucester.[9]
"When I graduated from university where I studied theater, film and television, I went into stand-up because comedy was something I enjoyed but also because it offered me a certain autonomy that I wouldn't have if I was sitting and waiting for the phone to ring as an actor. Then, I drifted into comedy acting through doing stand-up, and that was something that I really enjoyed. But, it wasn't the only thing I ever wanted to do. There was a time when I was younger where I just wanted to be at The Royal Shakespeare Theatre."[11]
In 1999, he created and co-wrote theChannel 4 sitcomSpaced withJessica Stevenson. The series was directed byEdgar Wright, with whom Pegg and Stevenson had previously worked onAsylum, and Pegg wrote the character of Mike Watt specifically for his friendNick Frost.[8] For his performance in this series, Pegg was nominated for aBritish Comedy Award as Best Male Comedy Newcomer.[16] The experience of making aSpaced fantasy sequence featuringzombies led to Pegg and Wright co-writing the "romantic zombie comedy" filmShaun of the Dead, released in April 2004, in which Pegg also starred.[8] AtGeorge A. Romero's invitation, Pegg and Wright made cameo appearances in Romero's zombie film,Land of the Dead.[8] In 2004, Pegg guest-starred in a spin-off of the television showDanger! 50,000 Volts! calledDanger! 50,000 Zombies!, in which he played a zombie-hunter named Dr. Fell.
Upon completion ofShaun of the Dead, Pegg was questioned as to whether he would be abandoning the British film industry for Hollywood, and he replied, "It's not like we're going to go away and do, I don't know,Mission: Impossible III", picking the title of an imaginaryblockbuster. When the filmMission: Impossible III was subsequently made, Pegg appeared in it as Benji Dunn, anIMF technician who assistsTom Cruise's characterEthan Hunt.[2] He has reprised the role in five furtherMission: Impossible sequel films:Ghost Protocol (2011),[19]Rogue Nation (2015),Fallout (2018),Dead Reckoning Part One (2023), andThe Final Reckoning (2025).
In 2006, he played Gus inBig Nothing alongsideDavid Schwimmer.[20] The same year, Pegg and Wright completed their second film,Hot Fuzz, released in February 2007. The film is a police-action movie homage and also stars Nick Frost, in which Pegg plays Nicholas Angel, a London policeman transferred to rural Sandford, a fictional village where grisly events take place.[21] In 2007, Pegg starred inThe Good Night (directed byJake Paltrow) andRun Fatboy Run directed by David Schwimmer and co-starringThandie Newton andHank Azaria. In 2008, he wrote the dialogue for an English language re-release of the cult 2006 animated Norwegian film,Free Jimmy. Pegg received screenwriting credit for this, and also voiced one of the main characters in the English-language version, which has an international range of actors includingWoody Harrelson.
Pegg co-wrote the script for a film calledPaul, about two young men who encounter a comedicextraterrestrial alien during a road trip across the US.[22][23] The completed script appeared on the 2008 "Brit List", a film-industry-compiled survey of the best unproduced British screenplays, inspired by the AmericanBlack List.[24] In those films and inSpaced, Pegg typically plays the leading hero while Frost plays the sidekick. HoweverPaul reverses this dynamic.[25] The film was released in 2011.[26]
"I've now done the ultimate nerd hat trick – Doctor Who, Star Wars and Star Trek."
Pegg is close friends withColdplay lead singerChris Martin, and appears as a violin-playingElvis impersonator in the video for Coldplay's 2010 single "Christmas Lights".[52] Along withJonny Buckland, Pegg is godfather to Martin andGwyneth Paltrow's daughter Apple.[53] In return, Martin is godfather to Pegg's daughter.[54] In a video interview with BritishGQ magazine in July 2018, Pegg stated that his daughter has sung backing vocals for Coldplay onstage at theGlastonbury Festival.[55] Pegg is also godfather to the son of actor and friendMartin Freeman.[56] Pegg's parents and sister briefly appeared inSpaced, while his mother appeared in bothShaun of the Dead andHot Fuzz.
In a July 2018 interview withThe Guardian, Pegg spoke about his battle withdepression andalcoholism, and howrehab helped him recover from the latter. He stated: "When I watchMission: Impossible III, I can see where I was then, which was fairly lost, and unhappy, and an alcoholic [...] I'm not ashamed of what happened. And I think if anyone finds any relationship to it, then it might motivate them to get well. But I am not proud of it, either – I don't think it's cool, like I was Mr. Rock 'n' Roll, blackout and all that shit. It wasn't, it was just terrible."[57] Pegg checked into arehab facility shortly before production ofMission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. He hid his recovery from thetabloids through court orders, although some journalists went so far as to call the clinic pretending to be his mother. Pegg attendedAlcoholics Anonymous meetings and has remained sober since.[57]
^Lee, Ann (12 July 2016)."Star Trek Beyond actor Simon Pegg has this piece of leadership advice for Theresa May".metro.co.uk. Northcliffe House, Kensington High Street: Daily Mail and General Trust plc. Archived fromthe original on 16 July 2016. Retrieved17 June 2022.Lead for the people, don't forget anybody. Don't just protect the people who are well off, look after everybody. There are a lot of people in this country who need to be looked after, who are so often forgotten.
^Freeman, Martin; Slevin, Dan (8 July 2013)."The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Q&A".Crazy for Martin Freeman. blogspot.co.uk. Archived fromthe original(Interview transcript) on 16 February 2017. Retrieved16 June 2022.
^abJonze, Tim (9 July 2018)."Simon Pegg: 'I was lost, unhappy and an alcoholic'".The Guardian. Archived fromthe original on 28 July 2018. Retrieved16 June 2022.And then he sits down to talk about depression. And alcoholism. And how he spent years trying to hide it, and how he nearly lost everything, and how he is lucky to even be alive. "It was awful, terrible," he says. "It owned me." Suddenly, this roof terrace in east London doesn't seem so sunny.
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