Maine University Grad & Benefactor, Multi-Award Winner as ‘Adrian Monk,’ Cast In New CBS Series

A four-time Emmy winner and University of Southern Maine grad is back in front of the camera, proving there are second acts.

Or, in the case of Tony Shalhoub, third, fourth and so on…

Shalhoub will play Matthew Gray-Gubler’s dad on “Einstein,” which joins CBS’ 2026-27 broadcast season and is currently in production.

The role will reunite Shalhoub with the creator and executive producer of the hit USA Network series Monk, which made the USM grad an iconic actor.

Einstein follows Lewis Einstein, the brilliant but directionless great-grandson of Albert Einstein.

He spends his days as a comfortably tenured professor until his bad-boy antics land him in trouble with the law, and he is pressed into service helping a local police detective solve her most puzzling cases.

Shalhoub starred as the titular detective Adrian Monk for the show’s entire eight-season run on USA Network, plus one streaming movie, Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie, which premiered on Peacock in 2023.

For his performance on the series, Shalhoub received three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.

Shalhoub’s fourth Emmy was for his supporting actor work on the Prime Video series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

On stage, he made his Broadway debut in a revival of The Odd Couple in 1985.

He went on to win the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Tewfiq Zakaria in The Band’s Visit in 2018.

Shalhoub was Tony-nominated for his performances in the Herb Gardner play Conversations with My Father in 1992, the Clifford Odets play Golden Boy in 2013 and the James Lapine play Act One a year later.

He spent a short time at the University of Wisconsin before participating in the National Student Exchange to the University of Southern Maine.

Shalhoub later transferred to USM, earning a bachelor’s degree in theater in 1977.

The world-famous actor has since become a major benefactor and supporter for the university’s arts programs.

He was named honorary chair three years ago of the fundraising campaign for USM’s Crewe Center for the Arts, pledging his own contribution of $150,000, saying he was excited to help the arts grow at USM.

“I will be forever indebted to this institution and this entire community for encouraging, supporting, guiding me,” Shalhoub said.

He was on hand last fall for the opening of the new $63 million performing arts center on the Portland campus.

Shalhoub said he remembered a small and cramped theater department when he attended the school.

During the grand-opening ceremony, he urged students to dream big.

“We built this for you, so take it, use it, push it, break it and then go out and do something extraordinary,” Shalhoub said.

After graduation from USM, he went on to earn a master’s degree from the Yale School of Drama.