Oscar-winning actress Emma Stone is the cover star of Marie Claire‘s September issue, on newsstands now.
This September, Stone slips into her tennis whites for Battle of the Sexes, a big-screen account of the legendary 1973 showdown between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs.
The movie in theaters September 22, co-stars Steve Carell and Elisabeth Shue, as well as Chris Parnell, Sarah Silverman, Alan Cumming and Andrea Riseborough.
Interviewed by her friend Sarah Silverman (who plays women’s tennis promoter Gladys Heldman), Stone opens up on what’s changed since King’s infamous tennis match, what hasn’t, and getting what’s yours.
On what portraying Billie Jean King taught her:
“I would say playing Billie Jean was a bit of a game changer. I am very nervous to communicate my opinions a lot of the time, especially publicly. She [Billie] is so direct and confident in the way that she communicates what she believes is right. To be able to step into that was a pretty powerful experience. It’s something that I still don’t feel entirely comfortable with, but it was also one of the great parts about playing her.”
On what was different about her role in Battle of the Sexes:
“I have never really considered the physicality of a person or of a character. Maybe because I hadn’t played a real person — there wasn’t someone who looked a specific way or whose hands moved in a certain way. So that was what I focused on more than anything: building from the outside in.”
On speaking out for equality:
“There is so much power to our voices, and we need to speak out. That’s something that I struggled with in the past, but it’s very hard not to feel galvanized right now, politically or consciously.”
On what gives her hope during these uncertain political times:
“Nobody is going down without a fight for love and humanity and equality and coming together. It’s so inspiring to see marches and beautiful writing and creative work. There’s so much power and a grace coming out of so many people who have so much to lose, and the human spirit is incredible. That’s worth a fight every day. And I want to learn how to fight better.”
http://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/a28644/emma-stone-september-2017-cover/