Warning: SPOILERS for Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is one of the most surprising releases of 2023. Not only did the anime series reassemble the original cast from Edgar Wright’s 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World—with Wright himself returning as a producer—but it took the story first told in Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series into an entirely new direction. Scott Pilgrim took off, quite literally, at the end of the first episode, leaving the majority of the series open to explore the world’s fascinating cast of supporting characters.
The Scott Pilgrim Takes Off ending seemingly sets up some season 2 potential, but showrunners Bryan Lee O’Malley and BenDavid Grabinski have been quick to say they did not plan to continue the anime series. Even if the ending is more of a fun button than a promise for more, the show executed its premise so well that viewers understandably may hunger for more. The good news is that the Scott Pilgrim Takes Off cast would be game; the bad news is that they don’t know what it would take to make a season 2. Here’s what Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Ramona Flowers) and Ellen Wong (Knives Chau) said on the subject:
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: It’s such a difficult one because I think, as people and actors, we all just love it so much. We would be so excited to continue to be a part of it in some way, but it is sort of like, “What could that story be?” That’s still a question mark, I think. I think what BenDavid and Bryan did with this was just so brilliant; it’s like a full history of all of our lives, somehow, in this show, and so I think to do that again is a tall order. But I’m sure that all of us would be down to do it again if they came up with it a second time.
Ellen Wong: For sure. And so much of this is their brains—BenDavid and Bryan, especially Bryan—that I almost want to just be like, “You tell me what to do, and I’ll do it. You tell me where Knives is going, and I’ll go.”
What Scott Pilgrim Takes Off Season 2 Could Explore
The most obvious place for a potential Scott Pilgrim Takes Off season 2 to begin is with the plot that Gideon and Julie appear to be cooking up in season 1’s final moments. Considering how Scott Pilgrim Takes Off redefines its villains, this could result in unique team-ups in which Scott and Ramona band together with some of Ramona’s other exes to stop Gideon and Julie. Scott Pilgrim Takes Off already pitted Ramona’s exes against one another, but the addition of Scott himself into the mix could create some new and interesting dynamics.
Thanks to a look far into the future, another big revelation in Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is the fate of Scott and Ramona’s relationship. In Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Screen Rant interview, the actor praised the realness of the way the characters’ future was presented. With the early 20s Scott and Ramona now aware of the dissolution of their relationship, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off season 2 could explore the couple’s struggles to avoid that future, and address the question of whether or not a relationship is doomed from the start.
The biggest question mark for Scott Pilgrim Takes Off season 2 could be the season’s overarching theme. The first season of the anime series guides most of its key players through a journey of self-discovery; with many of them finding a version of that, season 2 may need to find something else to explore without undoing the journeys of its characters. Still, BenDavid Grabinski and Bryan Lee O’Malley pulled off quite the surprise with Scott Pilgrim Takes Off; it’s not difficult to imagine that they could do it again.
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off
Based on the famous graphic novel by Bryan Lee O’Malley, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is an animated adaptation of the comedic action-adventure series. The series will see the titular Scott Pilgrim living a routine life until he falls for a delivery girl named Ramona Flowers – but before they can date, he’ll have to battle with her seven evil exes. The series will see several returning talents, such as the cast of the 2010 film by Edgar Wright, all reprising their roles, and musical partners Joseph Trapanese and Anamanaguchi.
