When you think of Rowan Atkinson, the first image that comes to your mind is of a man wearing a tweed jacket and trousers with a goofy smile on his face and a brown teddy bear by his side. Arguably one of the most iconic stars in the world for playing the role of the beloved Mr. Bean in the show of the same name, Atkinson developed an image of a happy-go-lucky individual.
Thus, most people might know about the fact that the star is an intellectual who routinely shares his opinions on many popular topics across the globe. In one of the relatively recent comments, he proposed the idea that electric vehicles may not be the way to go mainstream just yet, which may have stirred up more controversy than the actor originally assumed.
Rowan Atkinson Claims EVs Should Not Be Adopted For Mainstream Public Just Yet.
Known for his absolutely over-the-top and extremely well-executed slapstick comedy performances in the film industry, Rowan Atkinson is no stranger to keeping the audience holding their bellies in laughter for the entire time he’s on screen. But not so long ago, his written opinion on EVs may have just managed to do the exact opposite of what he’s known to do best.
In a written opinion article by him for The Guardian, the Johnny English star can be seen talking about how despite EVs being the way of the future, it does not make sense to start mass adopting this form of vehicular transport just yet. He claimed that combustion engines, at least for the time being, are more resource-efficient in terms of the scale they can be produced and maintained.
[Editor’s Note: There have been several changes made to the original article since it was published, which is indicative of the context that the star wanted to provide. The statement below is an excerpt of his original, unedited opinion]
“Sadly, keeping your old petrol car may be better than buying an EV,” though admitting that “There are sound environmental reasons not to jump just yet. I bought my first electric hybrid 18 years ago and my first pure electric car nine years ago and (notwithstanding our poor electric charging infrastructure) have enjoyed my time with both very much.”
He also went on to point out that combustion engines are being demonized more on their carbon emissions and are not being looked for for the different benefits they provide in the short run at least like the availability of infrastructure, and cost of manufacturing, which might not be feasible for many at present.
This was some of the context that was added to the original article so the public to not get a wrong idea about the star’s view of the situation.
Why Is Mr. Bean So Iconic?
Part of the charm why Mr. Bean is known all over the world as one of the biggest and most successful comedy series in history is due to its timeless nature.
Despite having little to no dialogues for entire seasons, the physical nature of the humor by Atkinson as the titular character was enough for people from any part of the world to understand what was happening, which in turn transcended the language barrier. Along with that, just the goofy and aloof nature of the series with the star’s charm made it a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Mr. Bean, streaming on Prime Video.
