“Baby Driver” has once again showcased the astonishing skill set of director Edgar Wright, as critics have been falling over themselves to praise the comedy-action heist thriller, which is well on course to be one of the best films of the year.
But things could have gone so differently. Edgar Wright only had the time to oversee “Baby Driver” due to his departure from “Ant-Man” back in May 2014. After developing “Ant-Man” for eight years as both its director and co-writer, Edgar Wright suddenly left the project because Marvel wanted to bring another writer on board to hone the script ahead of production.
Edgar Wright hasn’t looked back since his departure – in fact, he hasn’t even watched the film. (Despite the fact that he still has a “story by” credit.) The director declined to watch even a trailer for the Marvel movie. His reasoning for severing ties so cleanly with the comic-inspired film? “It would kind of like be asking me, ‘Do you want to watch your ex-girlfriend have sex?’ Like, ‘No, I’m good,’” he told Uproxx.
His strict avoidance of the severed partnership almost didn’t save him from seeing the film, though. Wright was almost forced to sit through “Ant-Man” when someone next to him on a plane started watching it. “When I saw that the person sitting next to me was going to watch the movie, I thought, hmm, maybe I’m going to do some work on my laptop,” Wright recalled. Considering how close you get to your in-flight neighbors, it’s impressive he was able to avoid seeing any of the action.
Things ultimately turned out quite well for everyone involved, though. Wright was able to not only make “Baby Driver,” but he also cast his close friend Paul Rudd as Ant-Man. Plus “Ant-Man” was yet another huge hit for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as it was met with impressive reviews and grossed $519.3 million upon its release.
They weren’t quite as good as “Baby Driver” reviews, though. The latest Wright film was released in cinemas on June 28, and you can get the inside scoop with our “Baby Driver” spoilers.
