R.I.P. Rowan Atkinson: Mr. Bean Killed by Twitter

Celebrities have always been the target of Twitter death hoax. And, Rowan Atkinson?the Mr. Bean star, was added to the growing list on early Sunday morning.

R.I.P. Rowan Atkinson was the top trending on Twitter, and more interestingly even the authoritative online encyclopedia Wikipedia had been fooled this time.

The death rumor came from Michael Robert Meras, a Twitter user of the Philippines, who posted a tweet at around 11 a.m. Sunday, claiming, R.I.P. Rowan Atkinson.

The tweet made a big splash on Twitter. The rumors went viral on Twitter Sunday morning and some people began speculating if it's real or rumor. Some even believed that Atkinson was indeed dead and paid tributes to the poor actor without confirmation. It made R.I.P. Rowan Atkinson go viral on the Internet.

Much worse, another Twitter user from the Philippines posted a tweet saying, My sister is a working student in London and she also confirmed it too. Last night he passed.

The incorrectly relay of an erroneous information prompted Wikipedia, a collaborative, multilingual Internet encyclopedia, to even update the actor's page by inserting the death date of the actor as 26 February 2012 on the page. However, the insertion was deleted soon.

Meanwhile, Meras might have felt the joke has gone too far, and he posted another tweet clarification, saying Shutting down now. Sorry guys, RIP Rowan Atkinson was just a joke. Sorry for that matter, I never thought it would be that viral. We<3MrBean.

The fans of the actor also clarified the rumors, saying Mr. Bean Is Immortal. The users, who tweeted R.I.P. Rowan Atkinson, explained RIP means Really Inspiring Person, after they came to know the truth.

Twitter is famous for being a virtual tombstone for celebrities. The famous people, ranging from Justin Bieber to Kim Jong-un, hasn't been free from the killing spree of the micro blogging site.

Here's a look at what the people tweeted about Mr. Bean Rowan Atkinson.

R.I.P Rowan Atkinson: Stop joking. Remember he's Mr.Bean - who was a part of your childhood and grew up with you. RT to show your respect.- justinbieber ‏ @iTunesBelieber

R.I.P Rowan Atkinson. If you can make people of all generations laugh without saying anything, then you're doing something right. - James ‏ @PhantomBowser16

Um... People... You do realise that Rowan Atkinson is MORE than just Mr Bean? How about Not The 9 O'Clock News & Blackadder? - Buttons McGee ‏ @vaxwell

Rowan Atkinson is NOT dead, ok?......... Gaaah people, get your facts right. - Hasya Arsitarini ‏ @hasya_

OMG. Bakit ba trending ang R.I.P Rowan Atkinson worldwide?! He made us laugh since then without uttering any single word. truee? :/ - Niña Nicole Cuison ‏ @nicolecuison

R.I.P Rowan Atkinson is trending,no he is not dead,thank God.RIP stands for really inspiring person. - NSyazmeen ‏ @NSNBMZ

Rowan Atkinson is dead? B*please. One accident cannot simply kills A LEGEND - Eunike C Wahyu ‏ @ikeeunike

HOAX it,. RT @nznznz_ien Mnggal krn ap ? RT @NhaldyPhenx: RIPRowan Atkinson, alias Mr. Bean...- Joan Roring ?? ‏ @joanfrangelia