This is what happens in the world of television on Sunday, March 21st. All hours are Eastern.
Top choice
Genius: Aretha (National Geographic, 9 pm, premiere of the series, consecutive episodes): The third season of Genius it’s more than just a link in the NatGeo chain. This is Aretha.
Head of National Geographic Genius: Einstein i Genius: Picasso it comes Genius: Aretha, an eight-episode look at the life and legendary musical brilliance of the Queen of Soul. Before the start of the pandemic in 2020, The AV Club spoke with showrunner Suzan-Lori Parks, one of the great American playwrights, and with a bit of multi-script genius, about how to bring Franklin’s life to the screen and why genius is both a noun and a verb .
The AV Club: What made Aretha Franklin a genius?
Suzan-Lori Parks: She creates something that transcends time, that moves away from the past and shoots into the future. And she is radically inclusive in the practice of her genius, because genius is not just a noun, it is a verb. It’s something that’s also inclusive. Something that illuminates the genius of each of us. He is the first person of color [to be the subject of] this series. It is the first American in Genius , is the first woman in the series Genius , is the first mother in the series Genius series. I think that’s how his genius works. In all cylinders.
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AVC: Mrs. Franklin’s father was a very influential figure in her life. Having delved into her history as a writer, what do you think is the core of this relationship?
SLP: Areta’s father, the Reverend CL Franklin, was a source of energy. He was an inspiring figure. He was one of the mentors of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In 63, I had something called, I think it was the Detroit Walk To Freedom. It was like that [at that time] the largest civil rights march of its kind. And then no one finds out, because after a month or so we had the March On Washington.
Aretha grew up in the presence of this power. He learned so much from him as a public figure … His father was not just a holy religious figure either. He was a human being. He was a complicated boy. He loved Sunday morning i he loved Saturday night. We have a good relationship with the Aretha Franklin estate and we hear over and over how much she loved her father. It doesn’t mean their relationship was perfect, but there was a strong, strong bond between them.
AVC: How did you approach the scenes in which Aretha acts? When do we see how one performer interprets another performer’s performance?
SLP: Well, Cynthia Erivo is a brilliant and brilliant performer. It is also a joy to work with her and she is very disciplined as an artist. Cynthia is a devotee of Aretha Franklin and she has been [for years]. He has a lot of love and admiration for her. It is not limited to imitation; it is not so. It is channeling the spirit of the queen.
AVC: Was it always linked to the project?
SLP: Cynthia Erivo was the only one I ever wanted to do. I had dinner with her and she came to the restaurant and they played music on the sound system, and when she passed me at my table, while she was sitting, the sound system “Call Me” by Aretha Franklin appeared.
Stroke: chills.
SLP: And I said, “Sister, they called you.” And he said, “Yeah, I’m sorry.”
AV Club: What’s your favorite Aretha Franklin song?
SLP: Well, now “Call Me” isn’t just a song for me. It is linked to a magical moment. But I love “Rock Steady”. I love “Chain Of Fools”, “Dr. Feelgood” … so many fantastic songs.
AVC: It is liberating or discouraging to interpret the life of a public figure who is not not more a public figure, but an icon?
SLP: That’s my thing. They call me these big challenges, these big jobs. It’s a burden, but somehow it’s light, because in my experience, when I work on the story of an icon, of a known person, their spirit helps me a lot. I rely heavily on his spirit of guidance and help. Like that moment when Cynthia comes in and plays “Call Me”? I mean I’m leaning on it in the spirit of Aretha Franklin. I’m saying, “Mrs. Franklin, could you help me here? Could you help me keep this conversation with Mrs. Cynthia Erivo?” And there she was. And I think so.
AVC: There’s an inherent musicality to everything you write, but each project has its own sound. How can this musicality be found for each project?
SLP: I listen. It sounds like a simple answer, but it’s not an easy task to listen to. You need to get the mess out of the way and open up. And that’s one of the things I admire about Aretha Franklin. He listened. He didn’t do the same thing over and over again. He went from gospel to pop, he advanced in pop music, he embraced the disco, he embraced opera. It constantly opened up to new styles. As an artist, I get a lot of inspiration from this. I only have my ears open. I stay awake.
Regular coverage
American gods (Starz, 8 p.m.): end of the third season
The Simpsons (Fox, 8 p.m.): abandonment coverage of the 700th episode
Shameless self-promotion for Ballistic Products and a great bargain on a neat little knife for you (Show, at 9 p.m.)
The walking Dead (AMC, 9 p.m.)
Wildcard
Q: In the storm (HBO, 9 p.m., series premiere, consecutive episodes): “QAnon has infiltrated the mainstream. We can no longer afford to ignore Q, and it does Q: In the storm disturbingly relevant. The documentary begins with footage of the January 6 insurgency at the U.S. Capitol and culminates with scenes from the “Save America Rally” that preceded the siege, literally the “calm before the storm,” to use a popular slogan Q Jim Watkins, owner of the 8chan website that “Q” calls home, compares at one point the pro-Trump rally to the 1963 march on Washington. The comparison is twisted and he doesn’t even have the slightest awareness of himself, like QAnon himself. ” Read the rest of Stephen Robinson’s review of this vital docuseria.