The Best Edgar Wright Movies

You probably can’t think of a more dedicated cinephile writer-director working in film than Edgar Wright, who gives Hideo Kojima a run for his money as to how many films he’s viewed in a single year, and maybe for that reason, he was summoned by Kojima for a cameo in Death Stranding. Hailing from the UK, Wright’s movies have reached international audiences with cult status and wide acclaim.

With his take on Stephen King’s dystopian thriller The Running Man starring Glen Powell set as his 2025 project, it’s time to look back on all the classics Wright has made. Whether it be his comedic trilogy with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, music-fueled action films, or unsettling horror, here are all his films, ranked.

Aside from movies, Edgar Wright has also directed a host of British comedy TV shows like Spaced, Asylum, Mash and Peas, and Sir Bernard’s Stately Homes.

8

A Fistful Of Fingers

A Fistful Of Fingers was Edgar Wright’s first feature film and aimed to be a spoof on Spaghetti Westerns, but it’s ultimately hampered by a very low budget and a film school project feel. The main actors here are composed of Edgar Wright’s friends. The film has also yet to be sold on physical media or debut on streaming, but, luckily, you can still view it on YouTube for free.

This is very early Edgar Wright. It has its creativity and moments, but compared to the more mature and seasoned works in his filmography, A Fistful of Fingers is hardly an award-winning contender. Wright himself isn’t too proud of the finished film, but if you can look past the budget and props, it’s a fun film featuring lots of comedic quirks about a gunslinger seeking revenge on a villain named The Squint for killing his horse.

7

The Sparks Brothers

Unlike the rest of his filmography, which are works of fiction, The Sparks Brothers is indeed a music documentary about sibling artists Ron Mael and Russell Mael, a pop duo officially known as Sparks. The film explores the impact of Sparks’ music on the industry and pop culture, featuring interviews with not only Wright and the Mael brothers but also a roster of many prominent musicians, music industry talents, and actors.

Edgar Wright also filmed the Sparks live in concert during their stop in London in 2018 at the O2 Kentish Town Forum, which is used in the documentary. Aside from standard archival footage and interviews, the film is also notable for its animation sequences featuring the voices of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as John Lennon and Ringo Starr, respectively. If you’re a fan of Sparks or want to know more about their cultural mark, behold this gift from Edgar Wright.

6

Baby Driver

Baby Driver is Edgar Wright’s take on a heist film, and it’s purely soundtrack-driven. That’s because the titular character, getaway driver Baby (played by Ansel Elgort)​​​​​, is always plugged into his music. While the heist story is nothing unique and filled with predictable betrayals (as films like these go), the car chases are well shot and riveting. The character of Baby is different and special as well.

The other hilarious and memorable aspect of Baby Driver is the masks used by the robbers at one point during the film. While Point Break uses former US presidents and The Town uses nuns, Edgar Wright has his cast wearing none other than the face of Austin Powers, Shrek, and Wayne’s World star, Mike Myers. This is the rare case when failing to get the licensing to Halloween’s Michael Myers works in a film’s favor.

5

The World’s End

The final installment in Edgar Wright’s Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy brings Simon Pegg and Nick Frost back to the pub and puts a hilarious twist on a sci-fi android film. The story follows Pegg’s character, Gary King, on a pub crawl reunion with his four childhood friends until events start turning into Hot Fuzz, though if everyone in the small town were homicidal, blood-filled machines.

The title takes on a double meaning, referencing the name of the final pub on their mission and also the android mayhem that makes things indeed seem like the characters are at The World’s End. It’s a fun sci-fi romp filled with many comedic and original moments as you’d expect from Wright’s Pegg and Frost trilogy, and it even includes another love triangle storyline between Gary, Steven, and Oliver’s sister, Sam Chamberlain (played by Rosamund Pike).

4

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

With Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Edgar Wright delivers an iconic live-action adaptation of the beloved graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O’Malley. The cast is filled with stars who are very prominent in the industry now, especially in the realm of Marvel and DC, and Wright’s choice of comic book elements for the visual effects elevates the film to be a more authentic and truly special experience.

There’s no better fit for Scott Pilgrim than Michael Cera, and the musical aspects of the story are very indicative of Edgar Wright’s style. If you’re familiar with the character, you’ll know that Scott Pilgrim is in a band and falls in love with a girl named Ramona Flowers, who has seven evil exes that Scott must now battle for them to remain a couple. There’s also an equally great beat ’em up game adaptation from Ubisoft based on the film.

3

Last Night In Soho

Edgar Wright delves into more serious psychological horror with Last Night in Soho, which also comes with a clever spin on time travel. The story takes place in the present, following an aspiring young fashion designer named Eloise attending the London College of Fashion. When bullied out of her dormitory, she moves into a bedsit and soon starts experiencing visions of a young woman named Sandie, who was alive in Soho in the 1960s.

Eloise travels back in time to witness the tragic figure of Sandie, a young woman aspiring to be in show business who cozies up to a shady man named Jack, with things looking more and more scary for Sandie. Then, eerie and uniquely designed phantoms of men start to appear to Eloise in the present day, haunting her from the past, and there’s a huge twist to all this mystery that you won’t see coming.

2

Hot Fuzz

The second movie in Wright’s Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy is the wildly entertaining Hot Fuzz, a spoof on a buddy cop movie with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. But it’s not your traditional film done in this mold, as it once again mashes together multiple genres, including slasher horror, thereby taking on a murder-mystery detective film packed with tons of British humor and featuring some of the most notable British stars.

The whole premise is that Pegg’s character, Nicholas Angel, is an overqualified police officer who had to be forced out of his unit to join a more incompetent department in the village of Sanford. There are small-town conspiracies afoot, over-the-top action sequences involving pubs and supermarkets, and excellent chemistry between Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as two police officers who are the opposite of each other’s personalities.

1

Shaun Of The Dead

Shaun of the Dead is the proper balance of comedy and horror, plus loads of zombie action. The name itself is a nod to the zombie classics by George A. Romero, and the film acts as a British spoof of them. This movie solidified Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as comedy duo gold, and you can’t ever forget the iconic moment where the whole group is bashing a zombie in the pub to Queen’s ‘Don’t Stop Me Now.’

Remarkably, Edgar Wright returned after a lackluster first feature attempt, A Fistful of Fingers, to make one of the most acclaimed horror comedies in cinema. From moments like Pegg’s nonchalant zombie apocalypse obliviousness to the ending and all the gory action and hilarious beats in between, Shaun of the Dead will be very high on your list of zombie film favorites.