Emma Stone slams sexist studio executive for the ’total garbage’ advice at the start of her career

Emma Stone has slammed a sexist studio exec who gave her a piece of 'garbage' advice when she first moved to Los Angeles.

Emma, 34, spoke about the incident at this year's Palm Springs Film Festival where she accepted the Desert Palm Achievement Award for her performance in Poor Things.

"When I first moved to LA, I went to one of those general meetings that they sometimes send you to, and an executive told me that for male actors, it's a marathon, not a sprint," said the La La Land star.

"And in his eyes, for women, it was a sprint, not a marathon. And that was 20 years ago.

"And I realize that advice is total garbage because the majority of the women that I look up to in this industry, many of whom are in this room, have proven that as time goes on, life and work only get more interesting and more fulfilling."

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Speaking of Stone's achievement, festival chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi called the actor one of the 'most important of this generation'.

“Emma Stone continues to exert influence as one of the most important actresses of this generation, whose performances are always exceptional no matter the role,” he said.

"In her latest film Poor Things, Emma delivers a burning intensity and character bound for liberation."

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Stone's new film, Poor Things is a Frankenstein-esq story based on the novel by Alasdair Gray.

It sees the Oscar winner star as Bella Baxter – a young woman who dies only to be revived by a surgeon (played by Willem Dafoe).

However, there's a rather bizarre twist. Instead of just bringing the deceased woman back, the scientist decides to swap out her brain for that of a baby’s.

It sounds pretty outlandish, but the film has been receiving rave reviews. In fact, audiences at the highly respected Venice Film Festival even gave Stone a huge standing ovation which lasted for eight minutes.

Meanwhile, the movie has also been nominated at the upcoming Critics Choice Awards and Golden Globe Awards.

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"This role was unlike anything I had ever read or anyone that I had ever read about," Stone said.

"She's a woman who is immune to external expectations and impervious to judgment and shame and playing.

"Bella was challenging because I had to try to unlearn those aspects in myself, and it's also what made her an absolute joy to play."

Poor Things will arrive in cinemas on 12 January 2024.