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PEOPLE & ARTS Tuesday 25 april 2017
Sex, lies and physics: ‘Genius’ drama is Einstein tell-all

LYNN ELBER ditional and academic phone from Australia. As
AP Television Writer way,” Howard said. “We he delved further into Ein-
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The were looking for the dra- stein’s life, Rush was struck
unparalleled brilliance and ma in the story and willing by his many sides and the
puckish wit? Check. The to deal with Einstein, warts fame he achieved for work
trademark wild mop of and all.” “Genius” hop- unknowable by many.
hair? Check. The marital scotches through time as it “He experienced a level
infidelity and free-wheel- follows Einstein flailing as an of global celebrity equal
ing sex? Yes, check again unconventional student; to that of his contempo-
for Albert Einstein, who in a young lover and imper- rary, Charlie Chaplin,” Rush
National Geographic’s fect husband and parent; said. But while Chaplin’s
miniseries “Genius” comes a Jew clashing with the Little Tramp film character
across as a full-blooded, German scientific estab- had an everyman appeal,
hot-blooded figure who lishment, and as the con- Einstein “managed that by
lived by his own rules, both flicted father of the atom- coming up with theories
scientific and domestic. ic age. Rush said he was that 99.9 percent of the In this image released by National Geographic, Geoffrey Rush
The 10-part series, starring more familiar with aspects world had no idea what he stars portrays Albert Einstein and Emily Watson portrays Elsa Ein-
Oscar-winning Geoffrey of Einstein’s world-chang- was talking about.” stein in “Genius,” premiering April 25.
Rush (“Shine”) as the ma- ing theory of relativity than Not all were fans. Einstein Associated Press
ture physicist and Johnny with the man himself, a dis- was seen as a threat by, ruled by Adolf Hitler. lar agenda by narrowing
Flynn (“Lovesick”) as the tant figure often reduced among others, fellow Ger- There are parallels with to- your focus, as opposed to
budding one, also places to a beaming, wild-haired man scientists who derided day’s clashes over climate broadening it, by doubting
Einstein firmly in a 20th- figure with brains. his work as a sign of foreign change and other science, innovation and trying to rig-
century world engulfed by “We all know the look of influence and “devoid” of Howard said. “This sort of idly hang on to accepted
political chaos and war. Einstein — it should be reality in the changing po- tactic of trying to galvanize ideas, there’s nothing new
“Genius” (debuting 9 p.m. an emoji,” Rush said by litical order destined to be support around a particu- in that,” he said. q
EDT Tuesday) is both en-
tertaining and intelligent,
as befits a drama that’s
based on Walter Isaac-
son’s acclaimed 2007 bi-
ography, “Einstein: His Life
and Universe,” and is the
Nat Geo channel’s first
scripted series. Also credit
Ron Howard, who brought
another complex scientist
to the screen in “A Beauti-
ful Mind,” the 2001 Acad-
emy Award-winning film
about troubled mathema-
tician John Nash. There
are some “Mind”-type cin-
ematic flourishes in “Ge-
nius,” restrained special ef-
fects that provide a visual
sense of Einstein’s thinking
and the universe as he
sees it and helpful for the
science-challenged.
But the series opens with
Rush’s Einstein and a young
woman in the throes of pas-
sion (intercut, unnervingly,
with an assassination that
foretells of the upheaval
ahead for him and the
world). It was a deliberate
choice, said Howard, who
directed episode one and
is among the series’ execu-
tive producers that include
Brian Grazer, his longtime
creative partner, and Gigi
Pritzer. Noah Pink and Ken
Biller are the screenwriters.
“Not only did it (the scene)
appeal to us dramatically,
but it also fulfilled the desire
to announce to audiences
right away that we weren’t
approaching it in an en-
tirely straight-forward, tra-