‘Pearl Harbor’ Actress Kate Becksinale Refuses to ‘Dumb’ Herself Down For Hollywood

There is a stereotype that actors and actresses in Hollywood are dumb. Fair or not, many celebrities do put their foot in their mouths with some of the silly stuff they say, especially about politics.

Kate Beckinsale, star of the Underworld franchise and the new Paramount+ series Guilty Party, thinks that she was TOO smart to succeed in Hollywood.

At least that’s what she told Howard Stern. Beckinsale claims a 150 IQ, which would make put her in the top 1% of humanity. But to her, the gift of genius is a massive burden.  

“Every single doctor, every single person I’ve ever come across has said, ‘You’d be so much happier if you were 30 percent less smart”

“It’s no good to me, though. It’s really not helpful to me in my career. I just think it might have been a handicap actually.”

She might not be making it up, though. She did study Russian literature at Oxford before dropping out to pursue an acting career. 

Beckinsale posted this on Instagram:

 Watch a clip of the interview below: 

Are Actors Dumb? 

The short answer is – maybe. They aren’t any smarter or dumber than any other group of people.

The “Actors are dumb” stereotype most likely originated from snooty Hollywood writers who look down at actors as mere vessels for their work. In my experience, writers, directors, actors, heck everyone in Hollyweird has their heads in the clouds.

There are plenty of brilliant actors out there. I think we would all agree Robin Williams was a genius.

• Natalie Portman went to Harvard and majored in psychology.
• Action star Dolph Lundgren has multiple scientific degrees, including a master’s degree in chemical engineering.
• Big Bang Theory star and Jeopardy! host Mayim Bialik has a Ph.D. in neuroscience. 
• Peter Weller, aka RoboCop, has a Ph.D. in Art History.

Actors are people just like us. 

Eight Types of Intelligence

Intelligence is not a tangible thing. One Harvard Psychologist said there are eight types of intelligence: 

• Spacial: People who are good at drawing, puzzles, or interpreting images 
• Bodily: High-level athletes and dancers 
• Musical: Self-explanatory, but people who can perform complicated music and understand complex musical structures 
• Logical-Mathematical: can solve problems quickly, think about things in abstract ideas 
• Interpersonal: This is what a lot of us would call “emotional intelligence.” Strength in relating to others and understanding the emotions of others
• Intrapersonal: Self-aware, understanding your own strengths and weaknesses. 
• Naturalistic: People who can see patterns in nature would be skilled in biology and other related sciences. Enjoys hiking and gardening. 

I wonder if that means there are “naturalistic” geniuses out there. As in, there is someone who is the world’s best at camping. I’m kidding a bit, but intelligence is more than just knowing things. It is understanding and relating them to the rest of the world. 

What do you think? Is Kate Beckinsale an actual genius? Can you even be a genius in today’s world? Let us know.