Emma Stone, 35, revealed why it was important to work with intimacy coordinator Elle McAlpine while making her film Poor Things, in a new interview. The actress, who recently attended a screening of the movie in London, England with director Yorgos Lanthimos, opened up about the safety she felt when having to act through the most intimate scenes.
“I don’t think having an intimacy coordinator is even a choice anymore. I think in the past five years, the industry has changed a lot for the better,” Emma told NPR. “Having her there felt like having both a safety net and a choreographer and a handhold.”
“She and I would text after a day of doing some of these scenes and just sort of say how we were feeling and what was going on,” she continued. “And it was just this really beautiful relationship that I found extremely, extremely meaningful.”
Emma also mentioned the toll sex scenes and dramatic scenes can take on an actor’s mind.
“I remember reading something once, that an actor on stage doing a very dramatic scene, and having meltdowns and doing monologues for 90 minutes a night just in theater, your body feels like it’s the equivalent of going through something like a car crash,” she explained. “Because your heart is racing, you’re having these big physical reactions to these emotions that you’re kind of asking yourself to go through.”
“And I think even when you know you’re acting, when you know none of this is real, there’s no real sex happening, this is all choreographed,” she added. “You sometimes underestimate what your body is going through separately.”
Poor Things, which was released in the U.S. on December 8, 2023, is based on Alasdair Gray‘s 1992 novel of the same name. Emma plays the role of Bella Baxter, who is brought back to life and has to relearn how to operate in the world. The film also stars Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, and Ramy Youssef.
Emma recently also spoke out about what intimidated her about taking on the role. “I definitely didn’t have reservations,” she told ET. “If anything, I just had fear of not living up to how great this character is. She doesn’t follow. She’s never been taught by society what to be — what she’s supposed to be as a woman.”