Emma Stone’s career has drastically surged in popularity over the last decade. For years, Stone was best known for her starring roles inEasy A(2010) andCrazy, Stupid, Love.(2011). Then, in 2012, she brought her fame to new heights after portraying Gwen Stacey inThe Amazing Spider-Manalongside Andrew Garfield. Stone became a Hollywood mainstay after these major roles, going on to reprise the role of Gwen Stacey inThe Amazing Spider-Man 2and star inZombielandandBirdman.
Then, in 2016,Emma Stone’s performanceinLa La Landsecured the actress her first Academy Award. The win provided Stone with more freedom and agency to choose projects. However, what a lot of fans weren’t expecting was the direction her career would take followingLa La Land. Stone is currently in her experimental phase as an actress, and we hope it never ends.
Emma Stone’s Filmography Is Getting Increasingly Weirder
Poor Things
Poor Things is a sci-fi romance film from The Lobster director Yorgos Lanthimos. The story focuses on the bizarre and fantastical world of Bella Baxter after a scientist named Dr. Godwin Baxter brings her back to life. The film is based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray.
FollowingLa La Land, Emma Stone appeared in her firstfilm under Yorgos Lanthimos, 2018’sThe Favourite. The movie tells the story of Queen Anne II’s servant lover, Abigail (Emma Stone), who quickly ingratiates herself in the court. The film features Lanthimos’s signature quirky humor as the supporting characters vie for power and attempt to remove Abigail from the Queen’s favor.The Favouriteisn’t quite the absurdist flick that Stone and Lanthimos would then collaborate on, but it arguably marks the start of her experimental phase.
Fans of Poor Things Should Revisit Yorgos Lanthimos' Previous Film
Yorgos Lanthimos' Oscar-winning 2018 masterwork arguably remains his best.
Poor Thingsis by far Stone’s most bizarre movie to date. Set in a dystopian, sci-fi version of Victorian London, Stone stars as Bella Baxter, a unique take on the Frankenstein’s Monster archetype. After being reanimated with the brain of an infant, Bella Baxter is desperate to explore the world and herself as she is whisked across the globe by Mark Ruffalo’s skeevy lawyer, Duncan Wedderburn.
Among many things,Poor Thingsis Yorgos Lanthimos’s exploration of audiences' outrage regarding sex on screen. The six-time Oscar-nominated director said, “I always find it very strange the conservatism with which sex was viewed in cinema or art in general, when you see how acceptable violence is” during an interview withLittle White Lies. Audiences will remember sex scenes as a major component ofPoor Things, with Stone bravely embracing all aspects of Bella Baxter’s cognitive and physical development. While these scenes caused outrage among some, most viewers praised Stone and Lanthimos forPoor Things' uncanded presentation of sex and relationships.
“I always find it very strange the conservatism with which sex was viewed in cinema.”
- Yorgos Lanthimos
Not skipping a beat from telling strange stories, Stone followedPoor Thingswith a starring role inThe Curse.The Showtime series, created by Benny Safdie and Nathan Fielder, revolves around a married couple producing a home-improvement show in New Mexico. After Asher Seigel (Nathan Fielder) takes money back from a child, which he gave her as a PR stunt on camera, the child curses him, and the show’s development quickly spirals out of control. The series is far from the sexual escapades found inPoor Things, but it is another bizarre notch in Emma Stone’s filmography.
Emma Stone’s Strangest Projects Are Yet to Come
Having only justwon her Academy AwardforPoor Things, audiences are eager to see what Stone is working on next. Fans of Stone’s collaborations with Yorgos Lanthimos will be pleased to hear her next movie is with the acclaimed director and is right around the corner.Kinds of Kindnesssees much of the cast fromPoor Thingsreturn, including Willem Dafoe and Margaret Qualley, with Jesse Plemons also joining the cast. Plot details are being kept under tight wraps, but knowing Lanthimos’s style, expectKinds of Kindnessto be an absurdist thrill ride.Kinds of Kindnessis currently expected to hit theaters in June 2024.
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Emma Stone is then moving from one star-studded project to the next. FollowingKinds of Kindness, Stone will feature in Ari Aster’sEddington, which is currently in production. Again, plot details are being kept under wraps, but consideringAri Aster’s horror background,Eddingtonwill likely be as haunting as it is surreal. The film also stars Austin Butler, Pedro Pascal, and Joaquin Phoenix.
After taking a quick break to work onCruella 2, Stone returns to her foray into bizarre movies with yet another project with Yorgos Lanthimos. Very little is known about this project outside Lanthimos and Stone’s involvement. It is currently in very early development. Like withKinds of Kindness, audiences can expect this movie to be bonkers based on their past collaborations.Emma Stone’s latest film,Poor Things, is streaming now on Hulu.
