Inside Edgar Wright’s Wild Ride Through Hollywood’s Studio System

Edgar Wright is one of those directors who seems so joyous. He certainly loves making movies and Hollywood, and in every interview, it feels like he's probably a blast to work with on anything.

Wright came into Hollywood with a strong voice, directing and writing the Cornetto trilogy, which I think are his masterpieces.

Since then, Wright has expanded into other work at studios, stepping away from Marvel's Ant-Man and now opening Running Man wide.

So, what is it like for Edgar Wright to deal with different studios and to dip his toe into adaptations?

Well, the director sat down with Screenrant and had some really interesting things to say. Let's go over a few of his best quotes.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

On Navigating Studio Gigs

Taking these big jobs is a different trajectory for Wright. So naturally, the conversation turned to his past studio experiences, particularly his high-profile Ant-Man departure.

Wright contrasted that process with his current project.

“The thing with the Marvel process is that it's a slightly different thing because I actually had written the first draft of it before even the first Iron Man came out,” Wright explained. “So by the time it came around to potentially making it, there's a brand and there's a continuity and there's a certain way things work, which was a bit antithetical to what we'd written and how I'd operated.”

With The Running Man, a Paramount production, the experience was different. He was brought in specifically for his vision.

“In this case, I was fortunate that the people who asked me to make it also wanted my spin on the material,” he said. “I'm very happy that this is a big studio movie because I don't feel like I had to tone down my sensibilities, or it wasn't something that was even a discussion. It's just we made the movie we wanted to make.”

On Adapting Stephen King

Stephen King is maybe the most famous author of all time, and beloved by fans. So when you're adapting his work, it comes with a pretty high set of expectations.

And so does remaking a very famous Arnold Schwarzenegger action movie.

But The Running Man is a new adaptation of the Stephen King novel (written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman), not a real remake of the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger film, because that film was much more loosely based on the novel, which this new one is actually closer to...if that makes sense.

For Wright, this whole process started with getting the blessing of Stephen King

“It was a nerve-wracking moment for me and Michael Bacall to hand in our homework and see what Stephen King thought of our adaptation of his work, but he loved it,” Wright shared.

That approval, however, came with its own pressure.

“But then that's a blessing and a curse because you already have the pressure of trying to visualize the movie that's in your head. And because he likes the screenplay, now, I also have to live up to the movie that's in his head as well. So I spent the entire production just wanting Stephen King to be happy. And thankfully, he loves the movie, so it's a win-win. I don't care what anybody else thinks.”

On His Approach to the Story

Wright's goal was to hew closer to the book's immersive, first-person perspective, which he felt was missing from the '80s movie.

“What I really enjoyed on The Running Man was trying to make the movie feel very experiential,” Wright said. “The thing that I really loved in the book that isn't in the 1987 film is that you see everything from Ben Richards' point of view. You really feel like you are on the show with him because you don't have any information that he doesn't have. And so we designed the action and even the visual storytelling to make it very much a subjective point of view all the time.”

Ultimately, Wright seems to have found a way to bring his loyal, meticulous process—the one honed on his indie darlings—to the world of big-budget filmmaking, a balance that has him feeling grateful.

“I sometimes see people who make their movie in the UK and then go to Hollywood without anybody else, and then are completely at sea because they get steamrolled because they don't have anybody in their corner. And it's not just about loyalty, but it's about recognizing who you work brilliantly with and continuing to work with them.”

Summing It All Up

It sounds like Wright has managed to navigate the Hollywood studio system on his own terms, bringing his distinct, energetic style to a massive blockbuster.

Let me know what you think in the comments,