Behind The Scenes with Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Atkinson stars in “Keeping Mum” as a small-town vicar oblivious to his family’s disintegration. HK talked to the actor about his role and the return of Mr. Bean.
HK Magazine: Do you see yourself more as an actor or comedian?
Rowan Atkinson: I see myself as a bit of both. It would be foolish for me to claim to be an actor because clearly I specialize in comedy and I have more of a comic instinct than most actors. But when it comes to playing the part, whether it’s Mr. Bean or Johnny English or the Black Adder, the idea is to present a credible character. I know a lot of people say Mr. Bean isn’t credible. He’s just silly, and of course sometimes he is. But I’m a great believer that comedy is rooted in truth, and unless there’s a kernel of truth at the center of a joke, then people aren’t going to laugh.
HK: Is your role in this film what you would call a serious character?
RA: He’s a character with serious problems and serious dilemmas, which he has to address. Clearly, there are comic elements in how he works out his problems and how he makes a fool of himself from time to time. His own story is that he finds humor in the process of our story. I’m always a great believer that the funniest person in the room isn’t smiling. But most of the comedy about my character is not about the jokes. It’s a serious role with a bit of comedy in it.
HK: You play a vicar again. Are you attracted to these kinds of roles?
RA: This time, the role was more likely to put me off then attract me to it. But it didn’t put me off because it’s quite a different vicar to the ones I’ve played before. I suppose what’s interesting about any clerical figure is the balance between the rational and the irrational. It’s about pleasing God and your wife in the same life. It’s quite challenging. And it’s also an inherently comic dilemma.
HK: There are rumors you’ll do one more Mr. Bean movie and that’s it for him. True?
RA: We are trying to do another movie. “Bean 2” is in the development. We sort of have a script, but it’s all been a bit slow. Nevertheless, if we work hard between now and February, we might shoot between June and July. It will be entirely set in Europe. We’re going to put Mr. Bean in a country where he doesn’t speak the language. It’s going to be a European kind of film, as opposed to the last one, which was more American. I’ll probably feel too old to do another one. But you must never say never. I’m not saying never.
Plus: See what we have to say about Keeping Mum