Emma Stone has defended the sex scenes in her new film Poor Things after producers were forced to re-edit a controversial clip ahead of its UK release.
The actress, 35, who plays lead character Bella Baxter, who is brought to life by an eccentric scientist in Victorian London, has hit back at recent criticism of the film.
The comedy, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, has achieved high ratings within the British Board of Film Classification.
This is due to a controversial sex scene in which two young boys see Bella (Emma) working as a prostitute after their father hired her to teach them how to have sex.
Emma defends poor things to BBC Radio 4: ‘Bella is completely free and without shame about her body.’
Emma Stone, 35, has defended the sex scenes in her new film Poor Things after producers were forced to re-edit a controversial clip ahead of its UK release (pictured this month)
The actress who plays lead character Bella Baxter, who is resurrected by an eccentric scientist in Victorian London, has hit back at recent criticism of the film
She continued, “So much of this was about staying true to Bella’s experience. It (the sex) is clearly a big part of her experience and her growth, as it is, I think, for most people in life.
‘But I see it as just one aspect of many: her discovery of food, philosophy, travel and dance. Sex is another aspect.’
Furthermore, Emma noted that Bella is not ashamed of her body.
The actress said, “She doesn’t know that she should be ashamed of these things or cover things up or not dive into the full experience when it matters.
“So for the camera to kind of shy away from that, or say, ‘well, we’re just leaving all this out because our society functions a certain way,’ it felt like a lack of honesty about who Bella was. is.
“I’m not someone who just wants to be naked all the time, but I’m someone who wants to honor the character as fully as possible. That’s part of her journey.”
The film is currently certified 18 in Britain, but only after the controversial sex scene was edited to meet the criteria.
A statement from the British Board of Film Classification read: ‘We originally viewed this film for advice. We informed the distributor that we would likely classify the film as number 18, provided changes are made to a short sequence depicting sexual activity in the presence of children.”
Emma defends poor things to BBC Radio 4: ‘Bella is completely free and without shame about her body. A lot of this was about staying true to Bella’s experience’ (pictured this month)
The film is currently certified 18 in Britain, but only after the controversial sex scene was edited to meet the criteria
They added: ‘This is in accordance with the Protection of Children Act 1978. When the distributor submitted the film for formal classification, the scene had been re-edited and we were able to classify the film as 18.’
The photo contains more than a dozen explicit sex scenes and a huge amount of profanity.
Shortly after its emergence on the festival circuit, an anti-Poor Things whisper campaign began, with some saying that the use of the word “retard” early in the film is problematic.
The same goes for Stone’s portrayal of Bella in the early days, after her brain has been swapped with that of her unborn baby.
The feature film is based on the novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray, which was originally published in 1992.
An official trailer for Poor Things reveals that Bella Baxter was resurrected by her guardian, Dr. Baxter, played by Willem Dafoe, after she died by suicide.
Men in the trailer are baffled by Bella’s eccentric behavior, with Baxter explaining that since he brought her back to life, her head and body have been out of sync.
Stone noted in a Searchlight Pictures Bella film that “the more autonomous Bella becomes, the more challenged men seem to be by it.”
The feature film is based on the novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray, which was originally published in 1992. The feature film was released on January 12.
She revealed that she “wanted to play Bella because it felt like acceptance of what it is to be a woman.”
The actress also conveyed her gratitude for Yorgos, saying that he “gave me a gift for making me a producer for (Poor Things.)”
“I became aware of the whole process, which I wouldn’t have experienced if I was just acting in it,” she said. “It just felt like the perfect combination.”
The film’s cast is completed by artists such as Ramy Youssef and Mark Ruffalo.