Willam Dafoe On The “Quite Amazing” Yorgos Lanthimos & How Bella Symbolizes Hope in ‘Poor Things’ [Interview]

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic In “Poor Things,” Willem Dafoe plays God, bringing his devilish grin to the role of an ethically unbound surgeon who grafts body parts from one creature onto another, blending ducks and geese with dogs and goats — and, in the case of Emma Stone’s Bella Baxter, implanting a spare brain in the corpse of a drowned woman. The Dr. Frankenstein-like character is just the latest leap of faith for an actor who spoke to Variety, apropos of receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Poor Things looks set to be one of the major films of the 2024 award season.Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite, The Lobster), the sci-fi black comedy follows young woman Bella Baxter (Emma Stone) who, after dying by suicide, is resurrected by a scientist and runs off with a debauched lawyer on a journey of self-discovery.The film is based on a novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray. Alongside Stone, the cast includes Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, Kathryn Hunter, Jerrod Carmichael, Hanna Schygulla and Margaret Qualley.At the wedding ceremony between Bella Baxter and Max McCandles (Ramy Youssef), Alfie Blessington (Christopher Abbott), the ex-husband of Bella’s mother, interrupts and implores Bella, who he believes is her mother Victoria Blessington, to return with him.Bella abandons Max at the altar, keen to learn of her mother’s past life with Alfie.

Throughout his career, Willem Dafoe hasn’t shied away from challenging roles. And he wishes streaming audiences would challenge themselves in similar ways instead of watching lowest-common-denominator content.

Selome Hailu You might be able to spot Ramy Youssef for a minute in Gus Van Sant’s 2018 film “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot.” Maybe. “I think I’m in it? I don’t remember if I saw it,” laughs Youssef, who is credited for the role of Drinker. “There were so many times where I booked roles where the character has a name like Drinker or Guy in Kitchen, and then I would, like, not be invited to do anything.

Deadline’s Read the Screenplay series spotlighting the year’s most talked-about scripts continues with Yorgos Lanthimos‘ Poor Things, the darkly comedic genre-bender penned by Tony McNamara that marks a reunion of the Greek filmmaker with McNamara and star Emma Stone after 2018’s Oscar-nominated The Favourite.

Emma Stone’s new film Poor Things includes a sex scene that had to be edited in order to fit in with UK law.The film, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite, The Lobster), includes a scene so contentious that if left uncut would have contravened the UK’s Protection of Children Act 1978.The darkly comedic fantasy film sees Stone’s character being brought back to life by Willem Dafoe, who plays a Frankenstein-like scientist in the film.In the scene in question, two young boys watch Stone’s Bella Baxter working as a prostitute, after their father has hired Bella to teach them how to have sex.The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), which is responsible for the classification and censorship of all films and video works exhibited in UK cinemas or released on physical media, is clear that the film could not have been shown, even with an 18 certificate, unless the scene had been modified.“We originally saw this film for advice. We informed the distributor we would be likely to classify the film 18 on condition that changes be made to one short sequence depicting sexual activity in the presence of children,” said a BBFC statement.“This is in accordance with the Protection of Children Act 1978.

Pedro Pascal got a little handsy with Willem Dafoe’s wife, Giada Colagrande, Monday at the “Spider-Man” actor’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony. In a TikTok with almost 6 million views, the notoriously handsome Pascal is seen standing up after crouching down to pose for photos with Dafoe’s new star, then turns to Colagrande, an actress and director, and caresses her chin as she chuckles.Dafoe, 68, dropped his smiled as he watched the whole thing, muttering something inaudible to his co-star in “The Great Wall,” who quickly kept his hands to himself.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Willem Dafoe recently told The Guardian that “more difficult movies, more challenging movies” usually fail to perform well on streaming platforms because most subscribers just want to go home and “watch something stupid.” That’s a problem for someone like Dafoe, whose movies are often dense and challenging such as “The Northman,” “Inside” and “Poor Things,” just to same a few of his recent offerings. “The kind of attention that people give at home isn’t the same,” Dafoe said.

Pedro Pascal recently paid tribute to fellow actor Willem Dafoe in a heartwarming way. Pascal recounted a funny anecdote about watching the classic war movie “Platoon” as a kid with his dad, which involved Dafoe’s memorable performance.

Willem Dafoe received the first star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame of 2024. This is a well-deserved honor for the actor, who has been in dozens of movies in his career and is internationally respected for the versatility and boldness of his roles.

Pedro Pascal has singled out the actor that he considers to be “the greatest American actor in our lifetime”.The star of The Last of Us and The Mandalorian was speaking at a ceremony in Hollywood yesterday (January 8) for the unveiling of a new star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.The star being unveiled was for the actor Willem Dafoe, and in his speech to the audience at the event, which also included Guillermo Del Toro, Patricia Arquette and Mark Ruffalo, Pascal lavished his fellow actor with praise.“I saw Platoon in the movie theatre with my father and he made me cry so hard my dad sent me to the bathroom,” Pascal said.“He redefines the concept of rebel and originality by making it about generosity, integrity, kindness and fun. Willem is a good time and an amazing friend.”“He has been my greatest teacher,” Pascal continued about Dafoe, with whom he co-starred in the 2017 film The Great Wall.

Willem Dafoe is being honored!

Willem Dafoe has said he doesn’t think “challenging” movies are popular any more thanks to the onset of streaming.The actor, who is currently promoting his latest film Poor Things with Emma Stone, opened up about the current situation of the film industry in a new interview with The Guardian last weekend (January 7).He told the publication he thought the way people are viewing films now more via streaming has affected the types of films being made as a result.He explained: “…The kind of attention that people give at home isn’t the same. More difficult movies, more challenging movies can not do as well, when you don’t have an audience that’s really paying attention.

“It’s a very different film,” Yorgos Lanthimos said Sunday about his next movie with Emma Stone, titled Kinds of Kindness,which he’s currently editing. It marks the third time the pair have worked together.

Emma Stone dons a floral, nude dress while stepping out on the red carpet at the 2024 Golden Globe Awards held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Sunday (January 7) in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Searchlight Pictures’ Poor Things rounded out the top ten this weekend and American Fiction from Amazon MGM Studios continued its slow burn with both films in the running for big awards at the Golden Globes tonight.

Scots have slammed Hollywood’s deletion of Glasgow from one of the year’s hottest movies. The movie rights for cult novel Poor Things were snapped up by director Yorgos Lanthimos after he was given a tour of Scotland’s biggest city by author Alasdair Gray.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor “She is the most literal character. ‘It’s sunny, you wear glasses. I put on shoes because it hurts when I walk outside without shoes on,’” says producer and actress Emma Stone of her latest role as Bella Baxter in “Poor Things.” Based on Alasdair Gray’s novel of the same name, Bella is a creation of Willem Dafoe’s mad scientist Godwin Baxter.

Oscar winners Emma Stone and Penelope Cruz were among the stars who honored emerging directors during a brunch event at the 2024 Palm Springs International Film Festival.

Marc Malkin Senior Editor, Culture and Events Goodbye, Christmas and New Year’s. Hello, awards season! The Golden Globes are upon us, and that means the festivities kick off with W Magazine’s annual Friday night soiree toasting its Best Performances Issue. Expect to see well-heeled, A-List celebrities mix and mingle elbow-to-elbow in the penthouse suite of the Chateau Marmont.