Earlier this year, he dusted off his world famous Mr Bean character for the release of Top Funny Comedian, a movie made exclusively for audiences in China.
And on Sunday, it was a case of déjà vu for Rowan Atkinson, as he was spotted on the streets of London shooting scenes for a third instalment in another one of his cult favourite series: Johnny English.
The 62-year-old comedian – who went through a costly £5million divorce from his wife of 24 years, Sunetra, in 2015 – was spotted wearing a crisp white shirt with a red tie and black trousers as he stood before cameras as the buffoon spy.
Back! Rowan Atkinson was spotted shooting scenes for Johnny English 3 in London on Sunday
Dramatic scenes: The 62-year-old comedian was spotted filming high octane action scenes
With a sizeable crew surrounding him, the funnyman cut a pensive figure between takes, standing alone with his head down as he waited for his next scene.
And with the scenes being shot on the bustling streets of the English capital, it seemed fitting that an open-top red double decker bus was also incorporated into the scenes, with the cast and crew huddled on the top deck.
Little is known about where the third instalment of Johnny English will lead his character; the first, released in 2003, saw Johnny become the country’s sole spy after an attack on the MI5, while the sequel took him on a mission to China.
Bus: Incorporating all things London, a red double decker bus was included in the production
All aboard! Rowan was spotted throwing his co-star overboard in a fast-paced scene
Get smart: The funnyman stepped out in a crisp white shirt with a red tie and black trousers
A long time coming: Rowan, 62, first hit screens as the bumbling titular character back in 2003
The original, which also starred John Malkovich and Ben Miller alongside Atkinson grossed almost £22million domestically, 2011’s Johnny English Reborn only pulled in a comparatively meagre £6.2million.
Rowan Atkinson dusted off his world famous Mr Bean character today at the premiere of his latest film which is only released in China.
The comedian, 62, decided to revive the bumbling loner for the one-billion strong Chinese audience after a £5million divorce with his wife of 24 years, Sunetra in 2015.
In March, Rowan – who is worth at estimated £70million – released Top Funny Comedian solely for the billion-strong Chinese market. The film pulled in an impressive £7.4million, despite not being released to the rest of the world.
Pensive: Rowan cut a pensive figure as he stood solo among the production’s cast and crew
Under wraps: Little is known about the plot concerning his third instalment in the action series
Top Funny Comedian The Movie is a spin-off of the popular Chinese variety show of the same name and sees the star – who is known as Mr Foolish Bean in Asia – as one of the leading characters in the role.
The film stared comedians Guo Degang and Yue Yunpeng as they venture from from Beijing to Macao.
As Guo speaks limited English and Rowan no mandarin, he revealed the pair were forced to communicate mainly through body language.
‘Just with facial expressions and gestures we seemed to understand each other,’ Guo said at a promotional event in Beijing. ‘It was really an interesting experience, which proves that comedy can cross boundaries.’
First: Rowan appeared alongside Ben Miller and Natalie Imbruglia in the first Johnny English
Fix up, look sharp: He revived his character eight years later for 2011’s Johnny English Reborn
Top Funny Comedian The Movie was the first film Rowan has worked on since being granted a ‘quickie divorce’ from Sunatra Atkinson, 56, after he left her for Louise Ford, a comedy actress half his age, in 2015.
Their divorce was granted on the grounds of ‘unreasonable behaviour’.
Rowan is currently dating comedy actress Louise. She has appeared in Channel 4’s Misfits and starred alongside Inbetweeners actors Simon Bird and Joe Thomas in Sky’s Chickens.
Rowan and Sunetra were building an £11million home in Oxfordshire at the time of their split in 2014.
He’s back! His Johnny English production comes five months after the March premiere of his Mr Bean movie, Top Funny Comedian, which was only released in China
Loving it: He pulled a series of hilarious facial expressions as he posed with items at the event
Following the split, Blackadder star moved into a £4million London cottage while Sunetra resided in a £21million mansion in the capital, bought for her by Rowan in 2014.
One of Britain’s most wealthy entertainers with a fortune of around £70million, Atkinson sold his rare McLaren F1 supercar for £8million months before his divorce was granted in 2015.
Rowan first met his wife, the daughter of an Indian engineer from Ealing, west London, in the late Eighties, when she was working as a make-up artist for the BBC.
He was previously in a relationship with Men Behaving Badly star Leslie Ash, who he planted an avenue of rowan and ash trees for at his country home.
Split: Top Funny Comedian The Movie was the first film Rowan worked on since being granted a ‘quickie divorce’ from Sunatra Atkinson, 56, (left) and moving in with Louise Ford (right), 33
Louise and Rowan met in 2013 after appearing together in the West End as he starred in the comic play Quartermaine’s Terms.
The comedienne grew up in Bexleyheath, south-east London, before gaining an English degree at Southampton University.
After graduating, she won a place at RADA where she was in the same year and treaded the boards with now Hollywood actress Gemma Arterton.
This led to appearances at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with the Royal Shakespeare Company and parts in television comedies.
Handful: Rowan Atkinson reprising Mr Bean held a variety of props as he entertained on stage
Bouncing back: Rowan split from his wife of 24 years, Sunetra, in a costly settlement in 2015 but appeared to be making the money back with his new film