Simon Pegg often appears within blockbuster hits like recent entries in the Shaun of the Dead sequel. Active as an actor and writer in his native England since the mid-1990s, it took Pegg about a decade to really get his abilities recognized by the U.S. masses, which came thanks to Shaun of the Dead, a huge success both critically and commercially.
Directed by Pegg's frequent collaborator Edgar Wright, and co-written by the two men, Shaun of the Dead cast Pegg as the opposite of the resourceful badass that audiences often see as the lead in zombie apocalypse movies, and that was a true stroke of genius. Pegg's Shaun isn't necessarily incompetent, but he's extremely average, often unmotivated, and sometimes lazy. At least at the beginning of the film, as events surrounding him do force Shaun to do some growing up, albeit not without losing his inner slacker completely.
Shaun of the Dead would kick off the hilarious and famous Three Flavors Cornetto trilogy, which also included the thematically similar films Pegg also led those films and did a great job. Outside of his work with Wright though, Pegg tends to take a backseat, appearing in lots of blockbuster movies, but usually in a ing role, or sometimes even a cameo. Pegg may not be as beloved as an icon like Tom Cruise, but he's a gifted actor and comedian and deserves more of the spotlight.
That's not to say that Pegg should give up appearing in franchises like Mission: Impossible, Shaun of the Dead 2, focusing on vampires and otherwise known as From Dusk Till Shaun, would provide Pegg the opportunity to remind the masses just why he's such a formidable comic actor. While Pegg does lead films on occasion, they're mostly indie projects or lower-profile releases. While those are likely fulfilling to Pegg creatively, a performer of his caliber deserves another go at the bigger spotlight.
Plus, time may be running out for Pegg to reprise Shaun in a way that wouldn't require major changes to the character. While Pegg looks younger, he's 51-years-old, and at a certain point, the idea of perennial slacker Shaun as a middle-aged man with one foot in retirement might turn off some fans. Time flies, and by 2024, it'll have been 20 whole years since Shaun and Ed decided to go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for the whole thing to blow over as per Shaun of the Dead's famous meme. On the other hand, the onus to get Shaun of the Dead 2 made definitely isn't all on Pegg. There would be no point in making the sequel without Edgar Wright at the helm, and he tends to be quite busy. Hopefully, though, it'll happen.
