British actor Kate Beckinsale thinks she could be too smart for her own good.
On Wednesday’s broadcast of “The Howard Stern Show,” the “Underworld” star speculated that being so bright “might have been a handicap” in her career.
She recalled being told she had an IQ of 152 when she was a child, and even called her mother on the air to confirm the figure.
“That’s like almost Einstein level,” said radio host Howard Stern.
“Oh, I wish I had an IQ of 152,” he added.
“You don’t,” replied Beckinsale. “Every single doctor, every single person I’ve ever come across has said, ’You’d be so much happier if you were 30% less smart,′ and I’m sure that’s true.”
“It’s no good to me, though. It’s really not helpful to me in my career,” she added. “I just think it might have been a handicap actually.”
Beckinsale didn’t explain why having such a high IQ had been a hindrance. Nor did she provide testing details. The high-IQ club Mensa accepts people who score 132 or higher on school cognitive ability exams.
Stern asked how Beckinsale’s smarts affected her love life.
“I’ve always found I can forgive an awful lot if somebody’s funny,” she responded. “So, there’s a certain degree of intelligence in somebody funny that I’m able to mess with.”
Watch the interview here: