Bob Odenkirk learns of relation to King Charles III
Actor Bob Odenkirk recently appeared on the PBS show Finding Your Roots, on which he learned that he is related to royalty and a distant cousin of the British monarch King Charles III.
Along with host Henry Louis Gates Jr, Odenkirk made his way through his family tree before arriving at his great-grandfather, Friedrich Carl Steinholz, the son of the Duke of Plön, born in Germany in 1755.
Steinholz is related to the European royal families through his father, which means Odenkirk himself has royal blood.
“[It makes me feel] like a part of history that I didn’t think I was any part of,” Odenkirk said when he learned the news. “I’m an American. I’m not a monarchist. I don’t believe in that. You know, I feel like it’s a little twisted.”
He continued, “I understand why society built itself around monarchs and leaders, and they passed them down through generations. I understand that goes through every society, every civilization. But I think that we’ve gotten to a better place with democracy, and we should keep going down that road.”
Gates revealed that Odenkirk and King Charles are 11th cousins, prompting amazement from the actor.
In a trailer for the episode, the actor said: “Oh, that is crazy. I never even thought about that! Of course, that’s true, right? ‘Cause all these [royal] families are related.”
Meanwhile, last month it was confirmed that Lucky Hank, starring Odenkirk, has been cancelled after one season. The comedy-drama series focuses on a college professor in the midst of a mid-life crisis, detailing all the chaos and fallout that arrives as a result.
An AMC spokesperson recently stated, “We’re proud of Lucky Hank and thankful for the work of everyone who brought this unique, playful and deeply human show to viewers, from the talented creative team to our partners at Sony and, of course, Bob, Mireille [Enos] and the entire cast and crew.”
The full episode of Finding Your Roots will air on January 30th on PBS. Watch a clip of the episode below.
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