Emma Stone wins second career Oscar for 'Poor Things'

Stone has said the role of Bella Baxter was her favorite of her career

Emma Stone accepts the Oscar for Best Actress for "Poor Things" during the Oscars show at the 96th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 10, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Bl

Emma Stone claimed her second Academy Award on Sunday, winning the best actress trophy for her role as a woman revived from the dead in the dark comedy "Poor Things."

The 35-year-old actress scored her first Oscar for 2016 musical "La La Land."

In the Frankenstein-inspired "Poor Things," Stone played Bella Baxter, a woman who is reanimated after suicide by a mad scientist (Willem Dafoe).

The movie chronicles Bella's dramatic self-discovery and liberation - much of it through sex - first with a flamboyant lawyer played by Mark Ruffalo, then with a succession of clients in a Paris brothel. Bella grows increasingly independent as she journeys through a surreal version of 19th-century Europe.

Stone has said the role was her favorite of her career. The actress said she admired Bella's curiosity and her appreciation for the good and the bad.

In "La La Land," Stone sang and danced in her role as a struggling actress opposite Ryan Gosling in a movie that celebrated old Hollywood.

She also was nominated for best supporting actress for 2014 film "Birdman" and 2018 drama "The Favourite."

Known for her red hair and wide eyes, Stone had a breakthrough role in 2007's raunchy comedy "Superbad." She also has starred in "The Help" and "The Amazing Spider-Man."

"Poor Things" was released by Searchlight Pictures, a unit of Walt Disney.