10 Best Emma Stone Performances, Ranked

To say an actor has, over the course of their career, become one of the most fearless and valuable performers of our time feels like a nearly impossible claim to make — unless you happen to be making it about Emma Stone. Then it completely makes sense.

Stone has only been in the game for 20 years, but in that short amount of time (wild to call it short, but it is in the lifespan of an actor), she has grown into a major asset for true creatives in the mainstream space, i.e. those filmmakers and writers who want to push boundaries and let their darkest and most bizarre impulses take center stage. Her collaborations with button-pushers like Ari Aster, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Nathan Fielder show her desire to drown in the realities that make us most uncomfortable and, in turn, are the most important to explore.

Frankly, the world needs more artists willing to lay it all bare and take on the most daring portrayals necessary to make sense of the problems of our time. Stone isn't the only actor doing this, but she is part of an incredible company of performers putting their bodies and souls on the line to interrogate the human condition in a meaningful way.

Without further ado, these are the 10 best Emma Stone performances, ranked.

Let's be real: This performance would undoubtedly be higher on the list if Stone had amassed any less of an impressive career over the years. But because her resume is undeniably stacked, her film debut in 2007's iconic comedy "Superbad" has been relegated to the bottom of lists such as these. That said, it doesn't make the performance any less funny, charming, or memorable — it just proves what a star she was from the beginning (and it was also directly responsible for her signature red hair, fun fact).

Stone did such an excellent job of subtly playing both versions of the high school crush: the one that exists inside the head of the boy who's crushing on her and that one she really is. She exudes beauty and wit as Jules, but she's also got a great weird girl edge that pokes through in some hilarious moments where quirks like her unique speaking voice are highlighted. It's potentially the most human high school girl performance we've seen in a comedy movie, and especially from a supporting character.

Stone really leveled up comedically when she stepped into the role of Olive Penderghast in 2010's "Easy A." This was a starring part that felt tailor-made for her, and in a sense it was. With Will Gluck's vision and celebrated playwright Bert V. Royal's knack for writing the plights of teens, Stone's playful spirit and unique comedic sensibilities were the perfect final pieces in the puzzle of making this film work.

It's a movie that walks a tightrope of tones and does a fantastic job of balancing dramatic scenarios with real-life comedic levity. Much of that can be attributed to Stone's anchoring lead performance, which gives audiences the full breadth of how she is perceived — quirky, silly, and charming in the company of her friends and confidently suave to the rest of the school — and who she really is (and, in turn, how she really feels) when no one is looking. It's a beautifully layered turn that expertly captures the contradictions of growing up, much like the wonderful script from which it was birthed.

Alejandro González Iñárritu's surreal and darkly comedic satire "Birdman" secured Stone her first Oscar nomination — and if you've seen the film, it's definitely not hard to see why her performance struck a chord with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She plays a complicated recovering addict trying to reconnect with her father, a fading former giant actor who has an unhealthy attachment to the iconic superhero he played in a trio of films years prior. Clearly, he's just as troubled and unhealthy as she is.

And aye, there's the rub. Stone's performance gets to the heart of trying to fight your own battles when everyone else is too — and how you can find common ground with those around you who are similarly struggling, but have no less love in their hearts as a result. Her turn also highlights how difficult it can be when both parent and child have a lot of learning and, frankly, growing up to do. But ultimately, her work highlights the beautiful satisfaction of seeing a loved one — or even yourself — becoming who they were always truly meant to be. Plus, Stone had to work within the confines of the movie's brutal filmmaking method, which made any mistakes that much worse, so her nuanced and quietly powerful work truly deserves all the recognition it received upon release

It might be a little early on this list to say it, but it also might be true that Stone is at her best when paired with the zany brilliance of Yorgos Lanthimos. In his 2024 stunner "Kinds of Kindness" (potentially the most Yorgos Lanthimos movie Lanthimos has made yet), he really puts the performer to the test, giving her three meaty characters to embody and, frankly, bastardize. And it would be an understatement to say she passes with flying colors. Perhaps the thing to marvel at here is Stone's ability to take on three separate roles in one film (albeit in separate stories), because she weaves in and out of each one with ease and skill. They each feel like wholly separate individuals that would never or could never have any overlap, almost morally and ethically deterred from one another.

But more so than her ability to carve out three different roles is her work in making each of them so crucial to the story they're part of. They range in degree of literal importance to the plot, but even in the film's first parable, where Stone's character is the most minor of the three parts, her choices and impulses for her supporting role gives the audience so much insight about the situation at hand — and how someone might end up in that kind of mess in the world Lanthimos creates. This film interrogates what it means to be human in such striking and bold ways, and Stone's performances are a major part of giving the audience what they need to navigate Lanthimos' harsh worlds.

If there's any other modern filmmaker who might have tapped a goldmine when it comes to unlocking Stone's true potential, it would probably be horror maestro Ari Aster. Much like Lanthimos, Aster tries his best to poke and prod and dissect humanity at its most foul — and clearly there's something about that prospect that not only excites Stone as a performer but also compels her toward some of her best work.

Aster's latest film, "Eddington," is a great example of that exact notion, as Stone's turn as Louise Cross — the damaged and fragile wife of a sheriff plagued with delusions of grandeur — is full of foul impulses that lay bare the realities of what it means for a mind to be warped and to see those consequences reaped within your inner circle and, further, your greater community. 

Stone's character ends up pretty damn twisted, and through the commodification of her mind for a purpose she can't even have full faith in, the audience is able to see what can happen if people don't listen to one another — or even fully talk about major issues that will only fester if not truly addressed. "Eddington" is a divisive, provocative, and infuriating movie, and Stone's performance is crucial to that intention. While her role, on face, might feel somewhat small, she is the match that ignites the fire that is the entire film. 

Stone may have just perfected her version of the leading lady with her performance in Damien Chazelle's 2016 musical dramedy "La La Land," itself a gorgeous ode to the life of creative folk in Los Angeles that blends classic moviemaking with contemporary style. The actor won her first Oscar for the role, and it's not hard to see why, especially to all of us artists who find solace in the kind of work that cracks open the complexities of pursuing art in the modern world.

Take, for example, Stone's character Mia's achingly beautiful audition scene. She sings a song that laments the life of an artist, all the sacrifice and hardships they push through to achieve their dreams, while she's living it — and her performance exemplifies this brilliantly. She never gesticulates, we never see her arms, we simply stay with her face, wrought with emotion as she sings of an artist who said "she'd do it again." It, of course, means every bit of difficulty it takes to share those gifts with the world and still put food on the table.

And her face is all the audience needs. We can see the hurt and the exhaustion, but also the passion, the drive, and the love. It's all over her face, and it's in her eyes. It feels real because it is real. Stone is one of those people who strove to make art her life, so she understands Mia on a foundational level. That connection and, frankly, commitment to character in its rawest form is what generational performances are made of. Based on this turn, it's clear Stone knows a thing or two about that.

Stone's hilarious and cunning work in Lanthimos' riotous period satire "The Favourite" was all the rage when the film debuted in 2018, but it's hard to forget over half a decade later. Stone's character, the destitute Abigail Hill, works her way from poverty to royalty over the course of the film's runtime, and she does so in such a human way. She plays her cards right, but she also strikes at the most opportune time. You can almost see Stone thinking of her next move in so many of the scenes — and it's what makes her performance so good.

In fact, the way Hill switches up her attitude toward Olivia Colman's Queen Anne is practically worth the price of admission alone. It's so fun to watch Stone play in the performance sandbox with such storied and skilled actors, and Colman is no exception. I'd even argue that Colman's eccentric pushover Queen made Stone's conniving schemer that much better. A sublime send-up of royal power games, "The Favourite" shines because of its performances, which are easily the strongest elements in an otherwise strong film.

With her performance in "Poor Things," it's obvious that Stone would be a shoo-in for her latest project with Lanthimos, "Bugonia" — not only for the nearly alien qualities of Bella Baxter, but for her drive to uncover the true complications of human life through her performances. As far as Lanthimos' films go, Stone's work in "Bugonia" — a movie that follows a couple of conspiracy theorists who are convinced Stone's character Michelle, a high-powered CEO, is actually an undercover alien queen intent on destroying Earth and all of humanity — gives her work in "Poor Things" a run for its money. 

Something Stone doesn't get to do quite as often is play things straight. She rarely gets cast as the straight man (or woman, in this case) because she's so utterly versatile, not to mention brimming with great comedic timing. In fact, "La La Land" and "Birdman" are perhaps the only two other performances on this list that don't hinge on her ability to work her innate sense of comedy, no matter how weird or wild, and mix it with true humanity. But in "Bugonia," she gets to break out of that mold and play the straight woman in a way that haunts, chills, and terrifies the audience. This is a grim film with a grim performance by Stone.

It could even be argued that Stone's performance is the audience's barometer through which we consistently measure our empathy, sympathy, or lack thereof — and it is absolutely crucial in making this story work. If it weren't for Stone's nuanced turn, one that constantly makes viewers question it and also themselves, this twisted comedy simply could not have been made (and we'd all be watching the original 2003 South Korean movie instead).

It was as close to a crime as one could get when Stone did not win the Golden Globe for Best Actress for her stunning work in Nathan Fielder and Benny Safdie's absolutely revelatory, uncompromisingly weird and savage satire miniseries "The Curse." The nomination made all the sense in the world; Stone is easily the best she's ever been in any project. If you thought she was doing good work before, prepare to see the face of God — that's the level of impressive she was in the series. So, when it came to sense, the loss simply made none.

But win or lose, one thing is forever: the mind-blowing work she put into making this show the absolute best it could be. Her character Whitney, a two-faced white woman who will stop at nothing to be seen as woke and selfless while also achieving her own selfish goals, is familiar and infuriating in equal measure because Stone taps into her twisted humanity, as exemplified by women like her in the real world. Her work in this show (multilayered, complicated, uncomfortable, and filled with naturalistic contradictions that reflect the realities of the world we live in) is absolutely masterful, from the very start to the last frame of her face. And frankly, it's going to blow us all away if (but more likely when) she tops it.

"Poor Things" is something of a marvel. Let's get that out there from the start. Lanthimos' twisted and touching fairy tale is truly something otherworldly, filled with a delightfully dark whimsy. Stone's performance as the film's central character, Bella Baxter, is the icing on the tonal cake that is this weird little movie. Of all of the nominated performances on this list, this is without a doubt the most no-brainer of the bunch (and frankly, this one easily takes the cake when it comes to Stone's Oscar-winning turns).

Stone plays a woman who has the brain of a baby put inside her, which then forces her to grow up again but in her adult form, and the true marvel of this performance is both the physical and emotional work. She does so much incredible physical acting, not only when she's figuring out, literally, how to walk but also when she's using physical play to learn through early development. She then takes that physical work and tightens it up, turning it all into impulses she remembers from "childhood" but has learned to grow out of as her mind develops back into adulthood. It's pretty genius work from a physical acting standpoint.

But then there's also her emotional breadth of work within the film. Bella is an uncompromising woman, yet she's also starry-eyed and unmarred by the weight of the world, and there's some real power in that combination. It makes for some beautifully touching moments, especially ones that aren't necessarily poignant or trite, made to make the audience feel those warm-fuzzies. "Poor Things" is all about female freedom, and Stone's performance, assured and confident much like Bella, is equally as emotionally resonant as her character becomes through living and experiencing. It's almost as though art imitates life (wink wink).