Rowan Atkinson – Picture: Getty Images
In order to boost their comedy content, Netflix is teaming up with the British comedy giant Rowan Atkinson, known for Mr. Bean and Johnny English, for a new 10-part series called Man vs. Bee.
Netflix’s Man vs. Bee will reunite Atkinson with his longtime collaborator William Davies in the writing room as both have worked on the Johnny English trilogy. Davies has also written How to Train Your Dragon and Puss in Boots. The series is directed by David Kerr who directed Johnny English Strikes again as well as episodes of Inside No. 9, Fresh Meat, That Mitchell and Webb Look, and more.
Chris Clark serves as executive producer with Karl Oskarsson on board for cinematography.
HouseSitter Productions is the primary production company behind the show which was established in the UK in May 2020 with Chris Clark and Rowan Atkinson listed as directors.
The series was announced alongside a slew of other British Netflix projects too.
Here’s everything else we know about Netflix’s Man vs. Bee:
What’s the plot of Man vs. Bee?
Plot details on Netflix’s Man vs. Bee are very scarce and nothing else is known aside from a very brief logline:
A man finds himself at war with a bee while housesitting a luxurious mansion. Who will win, and what irreparable damage will be done in the process?
Who is cast in Man vs. Bee?
It has been announced from the beginning that Rowan Atkinson would lead Netflix’s Man vs. Bee. Atkinson has worldwide recognition for his roles as Mr. Bean and Johnny English. Along with Atkinson, the cast is also known to include Julian Rhind-Tutt (The Witcher).
What’s the production status of Man vs. Bee?
Filming for Netflix’s Man vs. Bee took place over the Summer of 2021 primarily in London and has since concluded. Now the series is in post-production. Take a look at these behind-the-scenes pictures of Rowan Atkinson and Julian Rhind-Tutt in Man vs. Bee.
Rowan Atkinson spotted filming his new Netflix comedy Man Vs. Bee. pic.twitter.com/9Le8HmRbma
— What’s on Netflix (@whatonnetflix) August 12, 2021
Metro described these scenes as Atkinson’s character giving his on-screen daughter a big hug while during a scene shot in a prison, while Rhind-Tutt looked like he was being escorted out from a courthouse by policemen.
According to DailyMail, much of the filming took place in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. The small town is in central England just north-east of London. It’s notably home to the Roald Dahl Children’s Gallery.
Filming also took place in Bovingdon, Hertfordshire too according to HertsLive. Pictures from Gary Callum of The Bovingdon Villager newspaper the team rigging cars for filming in the town. According to the newspaper the “word around Rowan Atkinson being in town quickly spread, with many villagers coming outside to take a peek.”
The series entered post-production as of November 24th, 2021 according to IMDbPRO.
How many episodes will be in Man vs. Bee?
It has been confirmed that Netflix’s Man vs. Bee will be a 10-episode series with each episode running 10 minutes. This is akin to Mr. Bean which also had a similar short runtime.
What’s the Netflix release date for Man vs. Bee?
Netflix hasn’t set a date for Man vs. Bee, but considering that the filming has long concluded plus the short runtime of episodes, we can assume an early 2022 release.