10 Movie Cameos That Were Total Accidents
3. Hot Fuzz - Peter Jackson
All three films in Edgar Wright’s Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy are rife with sight gags, clever homages and of course cameos. After the breakout success of Shaun of the Dead, Wright was catching the eye of Hollywood’s best including several names from the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As such, Hot Fuzz features two sneaky appearances from big time names.
Firstly, Cate Blanchett plays Nicholas Angel’s ex-girlfriend in the film’s opening scenes. She’s completely obscured by a full body suit and mask as she works on a crime scene so even though it’s hardly a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it character, most people had no idea.
The unplanned cameo however came in the form of legendary director Peter Jackson, whom Wright had spent time with on the set of Kong. At this stage, Hot Fuzz had been written and was ready to shoot, including the small role of a rather violent street Santa. Jackson mentioned it just so happened that he would be in the UK after filming had wrapped on Kong and offered himself for a part.
Suddenly, this throwaway gag in the movie’s recap of Angel’s career was now much funnier. The demented glare of the Father Christmas thrusting a knife through Simon Pegg’s hand belongs to the Academy Award winning Peter Jackson.