By Will Leitch and Tim Grierson
Emma Stone has said that her role model as an actress is Diane Keaton, which makes total sense: Now that you’re thinking about it, it’s hard not to connect them, right? Like Keaton, Stone is instantly likable, dazzlingly funny — you can even make an argument that she’s a comedian first and a movie star second — and relatable while never losing that star wattage.
In the span of a decade, she has gone from a first-time movie actress (in Superbad) to one of the most popular performers in the world, not to mention an Oscar winner. And as with Keaton toward the start of her career, it’s not difficult to imagine Stone getting even better from here, expanding her scope as an actor without sacrificing any of her inherent affability. She’s one of us while being the best of us — which is an excellent definition of a movie star.
In this week’s Battle of the Sexes, her first film since winning her Oscar, Stone plays Billie Jean King — maybe the biggest stretch yet in a career that’s just starting to suggest how much range she really has. We’ve seen her play straight comedy parts, wacky supporting roles and femme fatales. But it is obvious that ten years in, she is just getting started. It’s going to be extremely fun updating this…
