Emma Stone’s Unbreakable Bond With Bella Baxter
Emma Stone opens up about her enduring attachment to Bella Baxter, the character she brought to life in Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things, and why she finds it so hard to let go.
It’s not uncommon for actors to find themselves reluctant to part ways with a character, especially after months—sometimes years—spent inhabiting another person’s skin. The process of stepping away can be jarring, even for those who’ve done it countless times. Emma Stone, with a career full of varied roles, knows this feeling all too well, but there’s one parting that’s lingered longer than most.
Some performers, like Jim Carrey, have spoken candidly about the disorienting aftermath of a particularly immersive role. Carrey once admitted, after portraying Andy Kaufman,
“I didn’t know who I was anymore when the film was over. I didn’t know what my politics were. I couldn’t remember what I was about.”
For those who practise method acting, the line between self and character can blur to the point of vanishing. Even those who don’t go quite so far can find the separation wrenching. Florence Pugh, reflecting on her experience in Midsommar, described a sense of guilt at leaving her character behind:
“I felt like I’d left [Dani] in that field in that state. I definitely felt like I’d left her there in that field to be abused.”
Finding Something Special
Stone, by now a familiar face in British cinemas, has played her share of everyday women—characters she could slip in and out of without much fuss. But when it came to Bella Baxter, the protagonist of Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things, the usual routine didn’t apply. This time, the farewell was particularly tough, not because the role was harrowing, but because she’d grown so fond of the woman she was portraying.
Speaking to W Magazine, Stone confessed,
“If I could have a chance to play Bella again forevermore, I would.”
Her affection for Bella was so apparent that even Lanthimos found it a bit much, as Stone joked,
“I mean, even Yorgos is like, ‘We get it, you miss Bella. Get over it. Grow up.’”
There was, it seems, something about Bella that got under her skin in the best possible way.
Beyond Professional Attachment
Stone’s enthusiasm for the project was never just about the accolades or the opportunity to showcase her range. From the outset, she made it clear that her connection to Bella ran deeper than professional pride. In an interview with The Irish Examiner, she didn’t mince words:
“[She’s my favourite character ever], like hands down, by a mile – she’s incredible.”
The prospect of never encountering a role quite like Bella again is, for Stone, both a source of heartbreak and a mark of how fortunate she feels to have played her at all.
It would be easy to chalk up her devotion to the critical success the film brought, but Stone insists it’s more personal than that. The freedom she found in Bella was unlike anything she’d experienced before.
“Bella is precious to me,”
she said, struggling to put into words just how much the character meant to her.