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 the main character Bella Baxter, who is resurrected by an eccentric scientist in Victorian London, has responded to recent criticism of the film.
The comedy, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, has caused a stir in the audience ratings within the British Board of Film Classification.
This is due to a controversial sex scene in which two young men watch Bella (Emma) work as a prostitute after her father hires her to teach them how to have sex.
Defending the poor, Emma told BBC Radio 4: “Bella is completely free and not ashamed of her body.”
Emma Stone, 35, 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 responded to recent criticism of the film.
He continued: ‘A lot of this was about being true to Bella’s experience. He [the sex] Obviously, it’s a big part of your experience and your growth, as I think it is for most people in life.
‘But I see it as only one aspect of many: his discovery of food, philosophy, travel and dance. Sex is another aspect.’
What’s more, Emma noted that Bella doesn’t feel any shame about her body.
The actress said, “She doesn’t know how to be ashamed of these things or cover them up or not immerse herself in the full experience when it comes to something.”
“So for the camera to avoid that, or say, ‘Well, we’ll just cut all this out because our society works a particular way,’ felt like a failure to be honest about who Bella is.
“I’m not a person who just wants to be naked all the time, but I am someone who wants to honor the character as fully as possible. That’s part of her journey.”
The film is currently certified 18 in the UK, although only after the controversial sex scene was altered to meet the criteria.
A statement from the British Board of Film Classification said: “We originally watched this film for advice. We informed the distributor that we would probably classify the film as 18 on the condition that changes were made to a short sequence depicting sexual activity in the presence children’s.’
Defending the poor, Emma told BBC Radio 4: ‘Bella is completely free and not ashamed of her body. A lot of this was about being true to Bella’s experience (pictured this month)
The film is currently certified 18 in the UK, however, only after the controversial sex scene was altered 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 image contains more than a dozen explicit sex scenes and a large amount of foul language.
A whisper campaign against Poor Things began shortly after its appearance on the festival circuit, with some saying that the use of the word “retard” at the beginning of the film is problematic.
The same goes for Stone’s description of Bella in the early period, after her brain has been swapped with that of her unborn baby.
The 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.
The men in the trailer are perplexed by Bella’s eccentric behavior, and Baxter explains that since he brought her back to life, her head and body have been out of sync.
Stone noted in an article about Bella for Searchlight Pictures that: “The more autonomous Bella becomes, the more defiant men seem to feel.”
The film is based on the novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray, which was originally published in 1992. It was released on January 12.
She revealed that she “wanted to play Bella because it felt like an acceptance of what it is to be a woman.”
The actress also expressed her gratitude towards Yorgos, saying that he ‘gave me a gift for becoming a producer of [Poor Things.]’
“I’ve become aware of the whole process that I wouldn’t have if I was just acting in it,” he said. “I felt like it was the perfect combination.”
The film’s cast is completed by artists such as Ramy Youssef and Mark Ruffalo.