Ron Howard Will Direct National Geographic’s ‘Genius’
By Jack Giroux/April 29, 2016 9:00 am EST
Learn more about the Ron Howard National Geographic series below.
The plan is to start filming Genius this summer in Prague, and the hope is for the series to premiere next spring, in a total 0f 171 countries and 45 languages. A few months ago, National Geographic finally got its feet wet with scripted television. Their two-night miniseries event, Saints & Strangers, was mostly well received. The network has been planning on producing more scripted content for a while now.
In a statement to Deadline, National Geographic Channels CEO, Courtney Monroe, discussed their decision:
Hiring Academy Award-winning director, Ron Howard, was certainly a step in the right direction towards expanding National Geographic’s content and, potentially, their audience. Howard had this to add:
Ron Howard and executive producer Brian Grazer’s names should help lure in more viewers when Genius airs next year. Howard’s last film, In the Heart of the Sea, was a critical and financial misfire, but he’s still a filmmaker audiences know and respect. Plus, considering how excellent Howard’s Rush was, I think it’s fair to say the director deserves a mulligan or two. Not all of Howard’s films have connected with a mass audience, but when someone makes as many films as Howard does — and tries new things as much as he does — that’s expected. This is the director’s third collaboration with National Geographic, following Breakthrough and the upcoming Mars.
I look forward to National Geographic’s support as we tell this ambitious but intimate and revealing human story behind Einstein’s scientific brilliance. I hope that his story, as well as those of other geniuses, will both entertain and inspire the next generation of Einsteins.
