Poor Things: Willem Dafoe Reveals How Emma Stone Convinced Him To Sign On

Poor Things only got Willem Dafoe with a great pitch from Emma Stone.

By Aaron Perine

Willem Dafoe shared the story of how Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone convinced him to sign on for Poor Things. The star talked to The Hollywood Reporter about the awards-season favorite. It turns out the director and his co-star made a personal pitch. That doesn't always happen with some of these movies. Poor Things has been lauded in media reactions, so the recruitment effort paid off handsomely. Stone, Ruffalo and Dafoe have all received that praise. Check out what else he had to say own below.

"I always remember when Emma and Yorgos called me together. They just laid it out pretty much. And I didn't really know Emma," Dafoe said. "I'd seen her around when they were promoting The Favourite, which I really loved. When they described what it was, it was a no brainer. I said, yes."

"When we got there, Yorgis does a very curious thing that I think some people have talked about, but it's significant. We had a rehearsal period, and it's a rehearsal period where we don't necessarily apply ourselves to the scenes," he continued. "We do theater games and fool around and basically he makes the company and he's very skilled at that because he's a guy that is really impressive in his knowledge of many things and many different disciplines. So you really get dialed in about what he needs and wants to do. And when someone's really on top of their game like that, you want to be part of it. You want to help them do what they need to do."

How Did Reviews Take The Marvels?

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(Photo: Searchlight Pictures)

Fans have been waiting for Poor Things from the moment this project was announced. Putting all this talent together was always going to attract some attention. Add in the distinct look, and you have a recipe for a hit. Mark Ruffalo and Emma Stone are bringign all the energy too. W Magazine talked to Stone about how's she actually ended up signing on for Poor Things. Her pitch was really appealing as well.

"My character Bella is a bit of a Frankenstein, but she's also a bit of an experiment in the sense that everything is happening very rapidly on her," Stone reflected on the entire process. "So her hair grows about two inches every couple of days. It had to get longer and longer quickly because that's what happened in the book."

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What Is Poor Things About?

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(Photo: A24)

Here's what Searchlight Pictures is saying about the movie: "From filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and producer Emma Stone comes the incredible tale and fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe). Under Baxter's protection, Bella is eager to learn. Hungry for the worldliness she is lacking, Bella runs off with Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), a slick and debauched lawyer, on a whirlwind adventure across the continents. Free from the prejudices of her times, Bella grows steadfast in her purpose to stand for equality and liberation."

Are you excited for Poor Things? Let us know down in the comments!

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