Not many people associate creative celebrities with intelligence. After all, the general idea is that actors, models, and singers need a small team of managers to help them handle their daily affairs… or simply get from Point A to Point B. The more time spent in front of a camera, the less critical thinking involved.
But this is a grave generalization. First, many celebrities don’t leap into stardom without ever getting a job first—many actually receive a higher education before switching to entertainment. Second, celebrities often have the resources after becoming famous to devote time and effort to higher education.
Do you think you know which world-famous celebrities were first thinkers before they were performers? Keep reading for five of the world’s intelligent celebrities. And no—we’re not counting honorary degrees of any stripe.
Ben Affleck
Actor
Though he’s not known for being one of the smartest celebs in the world, Ben Affleck does have a penchant for blackjack. Today, most players stick to playing blackjack online for convenience. Top sites today offer extensive bonuses, along with guides for newcomers that explain the basics of doubling down, splitting hands, and more.
But Affleck took his interest in the game a bit further when he took up card counting at brick-and-mortar establishments. To succeed in the game, a card counter tallies which cards are being played by the dealer in order to anticipate which cards will be pulled next. For an eight-deck shoe, that means keeping track of 416 cards… while also playing blackjack.
Rowan Atkinson
Actor
Not many people would link goofball Rowan Atkinson with any type of genius thanks to his slapstick comedy and fame as Mr. Bean. However, long-time fans of Atkinson know that he’s an outspoken activist for many causes… and that he also lists his profession as an engineer on his passport.
That’s because Atkinson graduated from Oxford University with a degree in Electrical Engineering in 1975. (Though Atkinson is often credited with graduating from Oxford, he earned the first portion of his degree at Newcastle University before switching to Queen’s College.)
Lupita Nyong’o
Actress
Two weeks after landing her first breakthrough role in the film Twelve Years a Slave, Lupita Nyong’o graduated from Yale University. As a student of the Yale School of Drama Master’s Program, Nyong’o immediately put her skills to work, winning an Oscar for her first role. However, before she became a famous actress, Nyong’o had also won the Herschel Williams Prize back in 2011-12 at Yale.
She is one of few big-name Hollywood celebrities who pursued a degree in drama from an Ivy League school (which seems to be more common for Bollywood stars). Though famous performers aren’t short on Ivy League degrees, most are completed after they have achieved fame. Many are also honorary.
John Legend
Singer
Not all celebrities have earned their stripes at Ivy League colleges. Before he started rubbing elbows with the world’s top performers, John Legend studied English at the University of Pennsylvania—first in the late 90s and again in the mid-2010s.
Though he spent his undergraduate degree with the a capella group Counterparts, Legend graduated and pursued work at the Boston Consulting Group. The Boston Consulting Group is one of the world’s premier consulting firms that work with names like Black & Decker and Texas Instruments.
Ken Jeong
Actor
When Ken Jeong began developing his comedy career, he already had a highly successful job as a doctor. Jeong had studied pre-med at Duke University before going on to graduate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As an M.D., Jeong was fully immersed in his career when his comedy career led to a series of auditions.
Funnily enough, Jeong’s breakthrough role was in the film Knocked Up, where he played a doctor. From 2015-17, he also wrote and produced the show Dr. Ken, where he plays a medical doctor. Unfortunately, the show didn’t land with audiences and was soon cancelled.