UK taxpayers to the rescue: Simon Pegg film blunder results in £600,000 financial package
The British government has come to the rescue of a scrapped Simon Pegg film, which was forced to cancel production last year due to financial issues.
It was announced in April last year that the project, Angels in the Asylum, had filmed for half a month before coming to a halt because of cash flow issues.
The film was also set to feature Minnie Driver opposite Pegg. It told the story of women locked away at an asylum in Surrey in the 1930s for carrying the disease typhoid. Rose Williams, Katherine Waterston, Lesley Nicol, Aurora Perrineau and Alex Jennings were also set to star.
According to Deadline, the UK government’s Redundancy Payments Service (RPS), funded by national insurance payments, has now shared with crew members the expectation of a form of remuneration.
Approximately £600,000 is owed to the crew members who worked on the failed project. This allegedly will only account for a third of the amount crew members are owed.
At the time, producers Rob Sorrenti and Heather Greenwood admitted that the team was “forced into hiatus” and that it was “devastating when we were forced to halt filming due to our second round of financing failing to materialise”.
As per Deadline, an AITA Films spokesperson has explained the involvement of UK taxpayers with the simple statement: “Crew payments are being handled through the standard insolvency process.” A
Pegg was not involved in the finances for the film. The Mission: Impossible actor worked as an executive producer, as well as the lead star, but was not paid for his time.
However, Pegg apologised to the disgruntled crew at the time, promising them, “We’re making something really special here, something important. This is a crisis, but it’s also an opportunity, and we’ll be back soon.”
Despite this blunder, Pegg still has an exciting future on the horizon. In an exclusive interview with Far Out, director Edgar Wright hinted at a new project which will see Hot Fuzz co-stars Pegg and Nick Frost reunite.
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