Shut up and give Emma Stone all the Golden Globes. Her performances in 2023 are unmatched

You can't call it a nice surprise because it isn't surprising. But it is still nice. Emma Stone, from Scottsdale, received two Golden Globe nominations Monday.

I mean, it is the Golden Globes. Still. Anything that brings attention to two of the best performances of the year is worth noting. And then some. Individually, each confirms that Stone is one of the best actors working today. Combined, they're a reminder that when it comes to inhabiting characters, she can do just about anything.

Stone is nominated for best actress in a movie in the musical or comedy category for "Poor Things." She is also nominated for best performance by an actress in a television series for "The Curse."

How many Golden Globes does Emma Stone have?

They are the seventh and eighth nominations for Stone, who won a Globe in 2017 for "La La Land."

She also won an Academy Award for best actress in "La La Land." She gave a shoutout to Valley Youth Theatre in Phoenix, where she started acting, as well as Bobb Cooper, its artistic director, during her acceptance speech.

Why 2023 was Emma Stone's year

Sometimes actors rest on well-paid laurels after they win an Oscar. Stone has gone a different route, choosing difficult material and killing it.

This was a banner year for Stone; two brilliant performances, both in difficult, but rewarding material. In "Poor Things" she plays a woman who, during the course of the film, goes from being almost infantile to a worldly, voracious woman who wants to experience everything. Her character in "The Curse" is worlds away from that.

She plays the would-be co-host of a reality show whose thinly disguised ambition as she play-acts at being a social activist is so cringey it's difficult to watch. Her husband is played by Nathan Fielder. The cringe comes as no surprise for him, but Stone matches him, squirmy moment for squirmy moment.

What changes have the Golden Globes made?

This is the first Golden Globes awards since the Hollywood Foreign Press Association dissolved itself in June. It also has a new network. NBC dropped the Globes after racism and corruption scandals and boycotts. This year's Globes will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+.

There are other changes, as well. The Globes added a blockbuster-movie category, something the Oscars toyed with adding until the ensuing uproar nixed it. (The idea is to reward popular movies, and not just the often-excellent smaller films that win awards but you can't get audiences to with a stick.)

There is also a new category for best stand-up comedy on TV.

In truth, the Globes are something of a joke that Hollywood puts up with. They can boost a film or show's profile for more meaningful awards (think Oscars and Emmys); increase box office and ratings; and they were once considered a big fun party by the nominees, until they were shamed into not showing up.

Perhaps that will change this time. And no matter what, Stone is a lock for Oscar and Emmy nominations. She deserves those, too.

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How to watch the Golden Globes

6 p.m. Arizona time Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024 on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. X, formerly known as Twitter: @goodyk.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Emma Stone deserves all the Golden Globes. Here's why