The fourth season of the National Geographic drama explores the politics and lives of Dr Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X.
Dr Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X are the focus of the fourth season of drama anthology series Genius, which also marks the first occasion the franchise has explored two iconic figures.
MLK/X, which is streaming now on Disney Plus, stars Kelvin Harrison Jr (Waves) and Aaron Pierre (The Underground Railroad) as the visionaries in their “formative years”, as their distinct identities were taking shape.
But it’s not just their politics and contrasting approaches that are spotlighted. We also gain an understanding of who they were behind closed doors, which includes their relationships with their respective wives, Coretta Scott King (I May Destroy You’s Weruche Opia) and Betty Shabazz (The Woman King’s Jayme Lawson).
Opia told RadioTimes.com that there was “definitely excitement” in taking on the role of Coretta, but also “a lot of fear and a lot of anxiety”.
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She added: “This is my first time playing a real-life human being who’s walked the face of the earth, and so, for me, it was a very different situation, very different process [to what I’m used to].
“Because normally, all the characters I play, I give them everything they have, apart from obviously what the writer has, and so I had to make sure I kept the authenticity of Coretta and what we know of her, but also add my understanding of her – because I’m not her, I can never be her. All I can do is show my idea of her and what I think she was like.
“So it was definitely a mix of excitement, fear, responsibility, reverence, respect, but there was a lot of fun in it, as well, to be able to play in such an interesting way and on such a scale.”
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Lawson also echoed those comments, adding that such an approach is “necessary to fully honour and realise them as full human beings”.
But unlike Opia, this isn’t the first time Lawson has played a celebrated real-life figure. She starred as former first lady of the United States Michelle Obama in Showtime’s The First Lady, and she also portrayed leading civil rights activist Myrlie Evers-Williams in Till.
Despite the parallels between all three women, Lawson said the experiences were “different because each woman is different, and each woman has different nuances”.
“And because of that, the fear still exists,” she added. “Yes, I’ve gotten the opportunity to play Michelle Obama, young Michelle Obama, I’ve gotten the opportunity to play Myrlie Evers-Williams, but the fear never subsides because each woman is different and you still feel the challenge to honour them and revere them, but also give them the full life that they lived. So it doesn’t really get any easier.
“But it is rewarding. When you feel like you’ve found that pocket, when you feel like you’ve found the sweet spot with them, that, for me, is always very rewarding, to live in that and to live in their truth in that way.”
Genius: MLK/X is streaming now on Disney Plus, with new episodes arriving every Thursday. Sign up to Disney Plus for £7.99 a month or £79.90 for a year.
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