Cruella: we await the premiere with a talk with Emma Stone and Emma Thompson

There is very little left for the premiere of Cruella, the new Disney film that tells the life of the villain from 101 Dalmatians. In Cultura Geek we speak with Emma Stone and Emma Thompson. Read the full interview. In the note!

The premiere of Cruella, the new Disney movie that follows the villain of 101 Dalmatians, is approaching. Emma Stone will be in charge of playing Estella, a young woman who goes from living on the streets to being recognized as Cruella, a fashion icon in London in the 70's.

At Cultura Geek we were able to talk to the stars of the new film, Emma Stone and Emma Thompson.

Were you surprised that Disney allowed this film to be so dark?

-Stone: “Actually, yes. It's definitely dark for a Disney movie, maybe not dark for an R-rated movie. But yeah, it's darker than I've seen on Disney in a long time."

The Baroness is new to this universe and is both fabulous and a living nightmare at the same time. What was the process of creating the character like?

-Thompson: “I had a lot of fun playing her, because I think I spent a couple of years asking to be a villain. I spent decades playing good women and now I can be a really bad woman. I had a great time and every time Emma and I would go on set, we would walk in and look at each other like we were sculptures or works of art, which, at some point, we were. Somehow we all created the Baroness, I just went in and put the words in."

What was it like wearing those amazing creations? Were you able to sit during production, were you able to eat?

-Thompson: “No, it was too complicated. Going to the bathroom was difficult and involved a whole team of people. The shoes were also a challenge, because I don't wear anything higher than sandals. Also, I had wigs on, so I was quite a bit taller than usual, and in some places, I had to move sideways. Usually, I had 3 dalmatians on my face too. The underwear was a big problem.”

What was the craziest outfit you wore as Cruella that made you feel completely in the role?

-Stone: “My favorite outfit, which was absolutely crazy, was the dress I wore in the garbage truck, because it had a 40-foot train. That wasn't attached to the dress, because I wouldn't have been able to move, they added it at the last minute, when I got on the garbage truck to record that part. And it was nothing like what you would remotely wear in real life. But to be honest, there was also this skirt that I wear to cover the car. That was epic too, trying to walk to the car and cover him with the skirt was fantastic. In those moments you think: I'm in a movie”.

-Thompson: “And those moments were real, they weren't CGI. She walked to the car, wrapped the cloth around it, and did it like a million times, because it was hard. Then the garbage truck, when it drove away, that stuff that made like a real snake went by, it was all real. I loved that, it wasn't a CGI movie."

The two actresses talked about how adorable the puppies were and how they stole the show in their scenes. “There are some parts where the dogs were CGI, but they were on set. In whatever scene they could be in, they were," Stone said. For her part, Thompson added: “Yeah, they were so sweet, they worked so hard. They had little cross markings and they would go in and out and sit on the markings, wait, then they would be given a treat."

Between Estella and Cruella, which character do you prefer for yourself and which was a challenge?

-Stone: “It's interesting, because there's a kind of rejection that comes from Estella at some point, I think she's sweet, but she's not fully personified. I would say that there is something about Cruella that is very tempting. Because she is who she is, she completely accepts herself, so I'm interested in that world. She crosses some lines that I wouldn't necessarily cross, but to be honest… I think I prefer Cruella."

The Baroness is very tough and selfish, she has no problem using people for her own gain. Could you talk about how you approached her relationship with Estella?

-Thompson: “Yeah, she's tough and she thinks that quality is the only way and that's what's so unusual about her, actually. Like Emma (Stone), I'm very interested in the dark side of a female character, because she's rarely allowed to be dark. I mean, we're supposed to always be kind and good, bad moms are just unforgivable, no one can find words for bad moms. The Baroness is so firm in what she thinks and she has this wonderful saying: 'If I weren't firm in what I think, I would have to put my talent in the bottom of the drawer, like many other talented women who died without producing anything, without using that talent'. Actually, it is a very good point. So while I wouldn't follow in his footsteps, his commitment to his own creativity, I think is admirable."

Between portraying the accent and dialogue in the film, the emotional scenes, or mastering fashion with attitude, what was the most challenging thing in creating Cruella?

-Stone: “I don't know, it depends. Accents always cost. I think any time a character has a big emotional scene, a scene that is touching and helps move the story forward, it feels a little bit of pressure, because you have that day and that moment to do it. That is the difference between cinema and theater. If you're tired that day, that's how the scene will turn out. So there's always that sleepless night before I do what I know is going to be a pivotal moment."

How do you deal with nerves? Do you have some kind of ritual or do you think about what you have to do before doing the scene?

-Stone: “No, everything happens at the time you act. The more present you are, the less nervous you have. That's why I wanted to be an actress, in general, because I'm very anxious and I discovered that I'm more present when I'm improvising or doing comedy or theater. Because you don't have time to think about all the other things that worry you, you have to be in the moment."

You've played difficult characters before, but The Baroness is especially evil. Did you get inspiration from anyone in particular that you can tell us about? How hard was it being mean to Emma Stone?

-Thompson: “Well, we're acting, so we're not being mean. There's nothing more fun than pretending, and pretending to be bad came awfully easy. I was raised by a wonderful and kind woman, my mother, and my father, a wonderful man. I was surrounded by kind and loving people. My experience with people who are truly mean, harsh, and narcissistic is rare, but there are plenty of them in the entertainment business. I'm not going to name names, but we know them, in fact, they've talked about some of them recently. Evil in any profession is always possible and I guess The Baroness is a mix of many kinds of people. She can't stand someone else being successful, she has to destroy all the competition. So, she presents this personality of someone strong, but in reality she is very weak and she can't help but foresee her own destruction, because she can't recognize and accept the talent in other people. So when she sees someone who is not only more talented than her, but younger, it is very difficult for her to accept it. And of course, I found it very difficult to work with Stone because she is so much prettier than me and I dealt with it, more than anything, taking Negronis every day after work until very late at night," the actress joked.

Were you a fan of 101 Dalmatians when you were growing up? What was it like receiving the call to be Cruella?

-Stone: “Yeah, I really liked the 101 Dalmatians cartoon. He thought Cruella was a fun character. They called me to play her 6 years ago, long before we started shooting the movie. There was an idea, Disney has many characters. It was a 4-year process, with different writers and different things on the table. And we felt like we might never make a Cruella movie, because even though she's an interesting and fun character, we didn't know what world we'd make it in that would make sense. And then to take her and put her in the 70s…she's the Cruella from 101 Dalmatians and at the same time she's not, because we created a new story for her."

What was it like to be in England in 1970? What did you find most impressive and what transported you to that moment?

-Thompson: “It was like being a teenager again, because I was born in 1959. So, seeing the streets of London was unreal, because I wore some of those clothes. At that time, we all wore those clothes. It was touching, because the red buses in London are very different now, but when I was a little girl, they looked exactly the same and it was the same number of the bus that took me back to the city from where I lived. So when Emma gets on the bus, walking out of the store was like being little again, like being a teenager going to the mall to buy clothes. It was an amazing experience and the designer, she's so cool."

In your opinion, does your character have any weaknesses? Which are?

-Stone: “Well, yes, she's human, of course she has weaknesses. This is a movie that talks about that, about strengths fighting against weaknesses. So, what would be a weakness for her, her volatility, her reaction, becomes a strength through her creativity, her talent. I think it's a movie about how your weaknesses become your strengths, in a sense. It's not necessarily a matter of an ambitious character though, except for the fact that she taps into her creativity and who she is. She's learning to accept that who she is naturally wins."

Cruella will be available in theaters on May 28, it can also be seen through Disney Plus with Premium Access. If you still don't have an account with the streaming service, you can do a free trial at this link.