Ethan Hawke stars in ‘Tesla,’ a quirky biopic about the iconic inventor
It is a David and Goliath story for the Industrial Age. Young, idealistic Nikola Tesla came to the United States in 1884 hoping that electricity mogul Thomas Edison would work with him on a new system for generating and distributing electricity. Tesla’s alternating current system promised to transmit electricity much greater distances than the reigning direct current setup that Edison had pioneered. But Edison dismissed Tesla’s ideas as impractical, forcing Tesla to strike out on his own. The new biopic Tesla, directed by Michael Almereyda, follows what came to be known as the War of the Currents between Tesla and Edison. The film premieres August 21, available on demand through a variety of cable and digital platforms. Tesla (portrayed by Ethan Hawke) is the underdog hero. He lacks Edison’s business acumen and penchant for self-promotion, but is armed with a visionary idea and relentless ambition. To make his electrical system a reality, Tesla...