Brian May, the legendary lead guitarist and songwriter of the rock group Queen has a Bachelor of Science in Physics, a degree he obtained back in the 70s. And mind you, he earned the degree with honors. May then went back to school at Imperial College London so he could complete his Ph.D. in astrophysics. He did his doctoral thesis on the motions of interplanetary dust. That’s like, space and stuff, right?
Prior to earning a degree in physics, May was educated at Hampton Grammar School where he achieved ten GCE Ordinary Levels and three GCE Advanced Levels in mathematics, applied mathematics, and physics. With an IQ of 170-180, Dr. May’s intellect is just as rockin’ as the songs he wrote and played in the band.
135 - John Legend
It seems like whatever John Legend does, he does it well. This multi-awarded, illustrious musician graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis on African-American literature. He graduated from high school as a salutatorian in just four years and started his academic studies when he was just 16 years old! We would call him a nerd, but it takes more than a common nerd to marry Chrissy Teigen so we’re gonna pass.
The songwriter and record producer has a string of accolades under his belt, such as the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Hal David Starlight Award, and even a Primetime Emmy Award. He was given an honorary degree at the University of Pennsylvania in 2014. It looks like his IQ of 135 has taken him a long way in life.
125 - Freddie Highmore
The English actor made his first debut in the comedy "Women Talking Dirty" when he was only seven years old. Since then, he has built a prominent name for himself in Hollywood. Despite his success, Highmore never stopped studying. He gained his high school education at an independent school called Highgate School.
Later, when he was filming "Bates Motel," he studied at the University of Cambridge’s Emmanuel College. Highmore earned a double-first degree, a British counterpart of first-class honors, in Spanish and Arabic. He won a People’s Choice Award in 2017, but with an IQ of 125, it's not like he needs external affirmations to know he's doing a good job.
190 - Stanley Kubrick
One of the most influential filmmakers of our time, Stanley Kubrick is simply brilliant. With a record that includes films like "A Clockwork Orange" and "2001: A Space Odyssey," it shouldn't come as a surprise to see that his IQ is incredibly high. And when we say high we mean skyscraper high. His IQ of 190-200 places him on the same level as Isaac Newton and Leonardo da Vinci.
Many of the people on this list have put their supreme brains to work as straight-A students or top-notch academics (huh, dorks). Kubrick, however, says that school was never really his thing and that his achievements in the education system have been quite mediocre. As an adult, Kubrick criticized the American education system, saying it wasn’t effective or stimulating enough in order to help kids live up to their full potential.
154 - Michael Jordan
When being hugely successful in the Olympics is one of the least famous things you’ll ever do, you know you’ve got the perfect career as a legendary athlete under your belt. So much has been said about Michael Jordan that at this point, it’s almost not worth going into. However, not many people know that he dropped out of university to pursue an NBA career.
He’s been in a number of commercials since retiring from the NBA and is an avid golfer, but at this point, we’re just going to take the opportunity to casually remind you that he was also in "Space Jam." Oh, and to also remind you that he has since completed his Geography degree and has an IQ of 154.