Edgar Wright's Scott Pilgrim vs. the World has been highly praised and regarded as one of his most impressive movies in terms of cinematography and editing. The success of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz a few years before the release of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World made Wright an ideal director for the project, and his dynamic editing style goes perfectly with the colorful video game aesthetic of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim comics. However, Wright included one tiny detail that made the movie even more similar to the comics while he was filming.
A cinephile on Reddit pointed out that the actors barely blink on camera in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. This is because they were told not to blink by Wright to give the movie more of a comic book vibe. By preventing the actors from blinking while the cameras were rolling, the movie looks even more like the static panels of O'Malley's comic book series.
Edgar Wright is well-known for including small details like this in his other movies -- for example, the soundtrack choices for Skinner's car radio in Hot Fuzz and the lyrics of the music included in street graffiti in Baby Driver. Wright's decision to include this stylistic choice shows his dedication as a filmmaker, as well as his understanding of the source material.
Bryan Lee O'Malley's art style also features big eyes to highlight the characters' facial features. Wright's decision to stop the actors from blinking on camera emphasizes their eyes in the movie and could be a homage to O'Malley's art as well as a decision to make the movie more comic-like.
Wright confirmed this piece of movie trivia on Twitter in 2020, stating, "I made @brielarson do all her scenes without blinking to make it seem more 'anime'." It is also worth noting that the Scott Pilgrim comics make references to multiple anime movies and series, including Akira and Dragon Ball, further supporting Wright's directing choices.
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is a very fun and dynamic movie that has plenty of rewatch value. Learning about these finer details that Wright decides to put in his movies makes them even more enjoyable and truly highlights his skills as a filmmaker. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is already a favorite of many Wright fans and is definitely a good movie to wind down with. Finding Easter eggs in Edgar Wright movies can be a fun game, and counting the number of times the actors blink in this movie is just one of many tiny details to add to the list of Wright's stylistic choices.