Rowan Atkinson plays Police Inspector Jules Maigret, a Departure from funny man Mr. Bean
After making a household name in bumbling misadventure and ill-fated exploit as Mr. Bean and Blackadder, respectively, Rowan Atkinson had to be convinced by producers---for almost a year---to try his hand at being a somber and humorless fictional French Police Inspector Jules Maigret in ITV's two feature-length films. The first one, "Maigret Sets a Trap," will air at 9 pm March 28.
The actor admitted that he had wanted to turn down the part after having thought it over for three months. He said that, initially, he was not sure he could do it, as the character Maigret is "fairly bland."
The comedian continues, "He hasn't got a French accent or a limp or a lisp and he doesn't love opera. He's just an ordinary guy doing a slightly extraordinary job in a quite unpleasant world. He's not an eccentric, he's not a weirdo, he hasn't got a bad streak. But I'm quite good at not doing very much on screen. So that drove me to say yes."
Get Our Latest News for FREE
Atkinson also shares how he feels playing detective, saying that it "felt like a cliché." But he thought Detective Maigret was different. "And I liked the fact I'm rather old for it because he's supposed to be around 50 and I'm around 60. In fact I am 60," the actor adds.
He tells Mirror in an understatement, "The characters I play are not normally so low key."
He went on to say that, since he has played mostly "odd men" and eccentrics, he had to find a "different way of being" as Police Inspector Maigret.
The first film takes place in the dead heat of summer in 1955, Paris, in the midst of terror over the murder of four women on the Montmarte. The killer has not been caught, and the police are far from solving the crimes, even Maigret. And when a fifth victim is claimed by the killer, Maigret decides to let policewomen go undercover to trap the killer. It is a race against time to catch the villain before another murder is perpetrated.
The film also stars Shaun Dingwall, Aidan McCardle, and Fiona Shaw. The second film, "Maigret's Dead Man," will be shown later this year.
