Emma Stone Says She Made “Poor Things” to Explore 'What It Is to Be a Woman' in Extended Preview

'Poor Things,' costarring Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe, hits theaters Dec. 8

Emma Stone felt empowered making her new film Poor Things.

In a new extended-look trailer for the upcoming Yorgos Lanthimos-directed film, the Oscar winner plays Bella Baxter, a woman given a clean slate via an experimental procedure from a mad scientist of sorts, Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe). Reborn, Bella gradually discovers the wonders — and dangers — of the world. Her personal sexual awakening is among those discoveries.

"I wanted to play Bella because it felt like acceptance of what it is to be a woman, to be free, to be scared and brave," Stone, 34, says in the preview, calling Poor Things "a very, very funny film."

"She's understanding what it is to be a member of society," Stone says elsewhere of her character. "The more autonomous she becomes, the more challenged these men seem to be by it."

Poor Things is based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Alasdair Gray, and also stars Mark Ruffalo, Ramy Youssef, Jerrod Carmichael, Christopher Abbott and Margaret Qualley.

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Related: Emma Stone Is Reborn in Fantastical 'Poor Things' Trailer: Watch

Written by Tony McNamara, the movie earned an R rating for "strong and pervasive sexual content, graphic nudity, disturbing material, gore and language."

Lanthimos, 50, explained during a press conference at the New York Film Festival last month why the sex scenes in Poor Things were key to the journey of Stone's character Bella.

"It was a very important part of her journey. We felt that we shouldn't shy away from it," he said. "It would feel very disingenuous to tell this story about this character who is so free and so open, and then be prude about the sexual aspect of it."

"It was clear from the beginning, but also from the novel, from the script, from my discussions with Emma, as well, and how we came up with those scenes," the filmmaker continued of devising the scenes of sexuality. "She had to be free; there should be no judgment."

Lanthimos explained, "The same way she learns about language and human suffering and love and science and politics, the same way she should be equally free about sex and anything else."

Related: Emma Stone Surprises Crowd at Screening for Silent Film Bleat: 'If I Never Had to Talk Again, I’d be Thrilled’

Stone, Lanthimos and Dafoe, 68, previously opened up about the process of making Poor Things in a New York Times profile of Dafoe published this past March.

According the outlet, there's a scene in the film where Stone slaps Dafoe in the face off-camera — but Dafoe had his costar slap him in real life around 20 times to help make the action look more believable.

Stone also gave some complimentary insight into the type of actor Dafoe is in her comments to the Times.

"There's this instinct to perform that many actors have — the 'Look at me, look at me!' kind of performer," she said. "He's the opposite of that."

Poor Things is in theaters Dec. 8.

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