According to Variety, there's some interesting news for those people who don't exactly consider Bean as the artistic pinnacle of recent British cinema. Rowan Atkinson has teamed up with Simon McBurney, the actor-director behind innovative legit troupe Theatre de Complicite, to develop Bean 2, which is likely to shoot later this year.

Complicite has a rep for groundbreaking physical theater that combines highbrow themes with comedic elements. It recently enjoyed a sell-out revival at the National Theater of its early work "A Minute Too Late," which draws heavily on mime, slapstick and Buster Keatonesque gags.

Atkinson, of course, is the king of physical comedy, particularly in the near silent role of the destructively insensitive Mr. Bean, contorting his rubbery features and spindly limbs to huge box office effect. The decision to work with McBurney indicates a desire on the part of Atkinson, co-writer Robin Driscoll and producer Working Title to bring a whole new dimension to the lucrative Bean franchise.