Rowan Atkinson
Highest Rated: 100% The Witches (1990)
Lowest Rated: 30% Scooby-Doo (2002)
Birthday: Jan 6, 1955
Birthplace: Consett, County Durham, England
Best known to American audiences as the Black Adder and Mr. Bean, black-haired, bug-eyed, and weak-chinned comedian Rowan Atkinson is one of the most popular funnymen in England whose keen, often black humor and knack for physical comedy has earned him a huge international following. Born in Newcastle, Atkinson was educated at Newcastle University and Oxford. While at the latter, he teamed up with budding screenwriter Richard Curtis to write comedy reviews for the Oxford Playhouse. Shortly thereafter, the two created material for the Edinburgh Fringe. By 1978, Atkinson's humor had earned him a devoted fan base and he was offered leading roles in two British television comedies. Instead, Atkinson chose to get involved in the internationally acclaimed comedy series Not the Nine O'Clock News as a writer and a performer. His performances in the oft-distinguished show earned Atkinson a British Academy Award and got him designated "BBC Personality of the Year" in 1980. His stage performances also continued to significantly increase his popularity. In 1983, he and Curtis created the Black Adder, a cowardly and conniving Tudor Prince named Edmund who tries vainly to become King of England after inadvertently killing his father during a battle. Billed as a "situation tragedy" on the BBC, it ran three seasons and later spawned a couple of specials. Atkinson made his feature-film debut in the 1983 James Bond thriller Never Say Never Again. In the late '80s, he starred in a few films penned by Curtis. It was while they were filming The Tall Guy that Atkinson and Curtis created Mr. Bean, an average British Joe with a clumsy nature and a nasty streak and launched a series. Different from other shows in that it was largely silent, Atkinson's Bean demonstrated a rare gift for slapstick that has led to his being compared to Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. During its six year run, Mr. Bean became the most popular show in the U.K. and has since been shown in 89 countries where it has gained a cult following comparable to Monty Python and Fawlty Towers. Atkinson himself attributes his character's popularity to the fact that the socially awkward, middle-aged Bean's mundane adventures, largely due to his clumsy inability to cope with even the smallest of life's foibles, mirror the feelings and experiences of people the world over. In 1997, Atkinson brought the character to the big screen in Bean. Other notable Atkinson film performances include his voice characterization of Zazu in The Lion King and that of the hilariously inarticulate priest in Four Weddings and a Funeral.Atkinson oversaw an animated television series based on his beloved Mr. Bean character, and then took a cameo part in his longtime collaborator Richard Curtis' directorial debut Love Actually. In 2003 he starred in another international comedy hit, the spy spoof Johnny English, a movie so successful it spawned a sequel in 2011. In addition, Atkinson returned to the well yet again in 2007 with the feature length Mr. Bean's Holiday, which co-starred Willem Dafoe.

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Highest Rated Movies

Filmography

MOVIES

CREDIT
36% Johnny English Strikes Again Johnny English — 2018
No Score Yet Maigret's Night at the Crossroads Jules Maigret — 2017
No Score Yet Maigret in Montmartre Jules Maigret — 2017
No Score Yet Red Nose Day Actually Actor — 2017
No Score Yet Maigret Sets a Trap Actor — 2016
No Score Yet Maigret's Dead Man Maigret — 2016
38% Johnny English Reborn Johnny English $8.3M 2011
52% Mr. Bean's Holiday Mr. Bean $32.6M 2007
56% Keeping Mum Reverend Walter Goodfellow $1.5M 2006
No Score Yet Spider-Plant Man Actor — 2005
63% Love Actually Rufus $59.4M 2003
33% Johnny English Johnny English $28M 2003
30% Scooby-Doo Mondavarious $153.4M 2002
43% Rat Race Enrico Pollini $55.9M 2001
50% Maybe Baby Mr. James — 2000
No Score Yet Blackadder Back & Forth Actor — 1999
No Score Yet Comic Relief: Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death Actor — 1999
41% Bean Screenwriter Mr. Bean Executive Producer — 1997
No Score Yet Thin Blue Line, The - The Complete Line-Up Actor — 1995
No Score Yet Full Throttle Actor — 1995
93% The Lion King Zazu $94.3M 1994
95% Four Weddings and a Funeral Father Gerald — 1994
57% Hot Shots! Part Deux Hayman — 1993
No Score Yet Rowan Atkinson Live! Actor Screenwriter — 1992
No Score Yet Bernard and the Genie Charles Pinkworth — 1992
No Score Yet Rowan Atkinson Presents: The Driven Man Actor Screenwriter — 1991
89% The Tall Guy Ron Anderson — 1990
100% The Witches Mr. Stringer — 1990
No Score Yet Blackadder's Christmas Carol Actor — 1988
66% Never Say Never Again Nigel Small-Fawcett — 1983
No Score Yet The Secret Policeman's Other Ball Actor — 1982
No Score Yet The Secret Policeman's Ball Himself — 1981
No Score Yet Canned Laughter Actor — 1979

TV

CREDIT
No Score Yet The Graham Norton Show
2007
Guest
  • 2018
No Score Yet The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
2015
Guest
  • 2018
No Score Yet The Tonight Show With Jay Leno
1992-2014
Guest
  • 2011
  • 2003
100% Mr. Bean
1990-1995
Screenwriter Mr. Bean
  • 1994
  • 1992
83% Blackadder the Third
1987
Edmund Blackadder
  • 1987
100% Blackadder Goes Forth
1989
Edmund Blackadder
100% Blackadder II
1986
Lord Edmund Blackadder
No Score Yet Not the Nine O'Clock News
1979-1982
Performer
57% The Black Adder
1983
Screenwriter Edmund

QUOTES FROM Rowan Atkinson CHARACTERS