Geeks logo

Step Aside, James Bond: 'Johnny English 3' Enters Pre-Production

Now, at last, we have confirmation that Johnny English is returning!

By Tom BaconPublished 6 years ago 1 min read
Like
The name's English. Johnny English. [Credit: Working Title Films]

Strangely enough, our story begins with a credit card commercial. In the 1990s, UK bank Barclaycard ran a series of commercials that featured #RowanAtkinson playing an incompetent secret agent. They took the UK by storm, and in 2000, Atkinson revealed that the character would be transformed into Johnny English: a British spy, and the incompetent person's answer to James Bond!

The character has seen a reasonable amount of success, with two movies each grossing an impressive $160 million against costs of just over $40 million. Now, at last, we have confirmation that Johnny English is returning!

The comedic website Chortle has reported that the spy's third outing has entered pre-production. Shooting on the as-yet-untitled film is due to begin in the autumn, with a release date set for October 2018. It marks the second time this year Atkinson's shown the desire to reprise one of his fan-favorite characters, after a cameo as the dearly-loved Mr. Bean in the Chinese film Top Funny Comedian: The Movie.

As Atkinson commented:

"He’s fun and he’s rather human. I think he’s a rather realistic character. Perhaps he’s a more realistic and believable character than James Bond, in many ways. James Bond is just a superman. It’s rather fun to play someone with more faults and foibles."

He's right. Let's face it, if you gave most of us a pen that contains a tranquilizer dart, we too would end up tranquilizing ourselves. Here's the catch, though; the film industry has changed a lot since 2011's Johnny English Reborn. How will this oh-so-British spy respond to a world where spy films have become far grittier? There's only one possible answer: with a whole lot of tongue-in-cheek humor!

For fans of Rowan Atkinson, this is music to our ears. If you'll forgive my switching shows, there's just one thing I can say in response to Johnny English 3:

"Permission to shout "Bravo" at an annoyingly loud volume, sir?"

Credit: Working Title Films

(Source: Chortle)

movie
Like

About the Creator

Tom Bacon

A prolific writer and film fan, Tom has a deep love of the superhero genre.

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.