LOGIN ‘Genius: Aretha’ Showrunner on Why White Men Are ‘So Very Important’ to Aretha Franklin’s Story ‘It’s like when you tell the story of Einstein, you’ve got to mention the Nazis,” Suzan-Lori Parks tells TheWrapJennifer Maas | March 16, 2021 @ 1:05 PM Last Updated: March 21, 2021 @ 12:06 PM Credit: National Geographic/Richard DuCree National Geographic’s much-stalled third season of limited series “Genius,” which tells the story of Aretha Franklin (played by Cynthia Erivo), finally premieres Sunday. Set as four-night event, airing two episodes back-to-back through Wednesday, “Genius: Aretha” will give fans the deep dive into the “Respect” singer’s life they’ve been waiting for.