Emma Stone and director Yorgos Lanthimos have become one of Hollywood’s most fascinating creative partners. From ‘The Favourite’ and ‘Poor Things’ to ‘Kinds of Kindness’ and ‘Bugonia’, they sure make the most whimsical and weird movies of all time.
But these are films that never take the easy route. And as it turns out, Lanthimos has a very specific way of getting the best out of Emma Stone.
Yorgos Lanthimos Knows Exactly How To Push Emma Stone To Grow
Emma Stone might be one of the most dynamic actors of her generation, but even she has her own anxieties. Speaking to Little White Lies about filming her third collaboration with Lanthimos, ‘Kinds of Kindness’, Stone admitted that nothing intimidated her quite like a monologue.
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But rather than sparing her from them, Yorgos Lanthimos does the exact opposite. “Yeah, Yorgos keeps giving them to me. He just loves to throw me a damn monologue,” she revealed.
When co-star Jesse Plemons suggested that Lanthimos might be sensing her anxiety and deliberately encouraging her, Stone had to admit, “He doesn’t sense it. He knows it! I’ll say, ‘I don’t want to do monologues.’ He’s like, ‘You’re doing a monologue.'”
It might sound a bit cruel, but for Lanthimos, it seems to be part of the creative process. Even Stone recognises the value, “It’s good, you know, it helps you to expand.” After all, there’s only one way to become more confident at something you’re bad at: by repeatedly doing it.
Yorgos Lanthimos’ Philosophy Is All About Leaving The Comfort Zone
Stone compared Lanthimos’ approach to “exposure therapy.” Constantly searching for new challenges is the way growth comes, and this philosophy extends far beyond his actors.
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Throughout his own career, we can see that Lanthimos has consistently challenged his audiences to get out of their comfort zones. By rejecting the conventional form of storytelling, he always makes us embrace the weirdness. His movies always come as a question rather than simply passive entertainment.
By recognising where his actors hold themselves back, he has continued to draw out their best performances. Some of Emma Stone’s best work has come through his movies. As Bella Baxter in ‘Poor Things’, Stone is so brilliantly immersed in her role that she is almost unrecognizable. Given Lanthimos’ track record, it is hard to argue with the results that his philosophy yields.
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