Emma Stone Is Officially The Best Actress Of Her Generation
Last night was a pretty damn good night for me. My favorite actor (Robert Downey Jr), my favorite actress (Emma Stone), and my favorite director Christopher Nolan all won Oscars. It was a long time coming for Robert Downey Jr and Christopher Nolan, though Emma Stone already had an Academy Award in her back pocket for "La La Land." And that's what this blog is going to be about- I've been an Emma Stone stan since I was 13 years old, but I will speak here as a man of objectivity. I'm not here to blow smoke up anybody's ass, but I think what I'm telling you is the truth: Emma Stone is the best actress of her generation.
We often use "of their generation" to describe something that's really special. But nobody ever really sets the parameters for how long a generation lasts. In this particular instance, let's say that the length of Emma Stone's career up to this point constitutes a generation. Her first film was "Superbad" in 2007. In that time, she's been nominated for four Oscars, winning two of them, five BAFTA awards, also winning two of them, and seven Golden Globes, again winning two of them. I'm only including the awards that she's been nominated for as an actress in movies, as she was also nominated as a producer for "Poor Things" as well as for her performance in the TV show "The Curse," but we'll just focus on the filmography for now. That's an insane résumé for somebody who is only 35.
Getting nominated for so many awards obviously helps boost somebody's résumé, but it isn't the end all be all. One of the most important things an actor can have is a very diverse filmography. Emma Stone has been in blockbusters, comedies, and historical dramas. Outside of that weird role that she took in that Cameron Crow movie, she's pretty much elevated every movie she's ever been in. She even has the rare distinction of making a live-action Disney remake watchable when she killed it as Cruella Deville. Like I said, we're only focusing on the filmography, but in an age where "Saturday Night Live" is worse than it's ever been, she's one of the few hosts who is able to make that show bearable—a proud member of the five timers club.
This is not me saying that Emma Stone is the best actress ever. That distinction probably belongs to Meryl Streep or Katharine Hepburn. But she's already a Hall of Famer, and all she can do now is basically pad her stats. Before they even start shooting, I feel like one of the best things for an actor or actress to do is be selective with the roles that they choose. There was a time when Emma Stone was everywhere. When I was in high school, she was the biggest actress in the world. She's reached the point in her career when she's chosen projects that challenge her as an actress. She could've easily taken on every romantic comedy or superhero movie role and been great at it, but she stretched yourself as an actress with movies like "The Favourite" and "Poor Things," and she's been rewarded for it. As I said earlier, she now has two Academy Awards at 35. Only seven people (4 women) have won three or more. So she's the best in her generation. If she gets one more, then we're probably talking about one of the most accomplished ever.