For its first scripted television series, the National Geographic Channel is producing a “Genius” anthology that will focus on a different really, really smart person (Nat Geo calls them “innovators”) in each run. First up: Albert Einstein. And who else to portray Einstein than the man who has played both the Marquis de Sade and Captain Hector Barbora? That’s right, it’s Geoffrey Rush.
The series will play out over 10 episodes, according to Entertainment Weekly, and will focus on “Einstein and his rise from a rebellious but imaginative patent clerk, to a key figure in the study of atoms…and through the ups and downs of his life, from failing to get his doctorate to developing the general theory of relativity.” It’s based on Walter Isaacson’s book, Einstein: His Life and Universe, which, believe it or not, is on Bibi’s bookshelf (or was, as of a couple years ago). That’s a lot of ground to cover.