Cruella stars Academy Award winner Emma Stone (La La Land) in Disney's all-new live-action feature film about the rebellious early days of one of cinemas most notorious - and notoriously fashionable - villains, the legendary Cruella de Vil. The movie arrives in theaters and on Disney+'s Premier Access service on Friday, May 28, and believe us when we say it's an absolute must-see!
ComicBookMovie.com was recently present for Cruella's global press conference, and there was one question I had to ask director Craig Gillespie after watching the movie a couple of weeks ago.
Tipper Seifert-Cleveland (Krypton) only has a very small role in the movie as the young Estella/Cruella de Vil, but manages to do some incredible work in that time. So, how did the filmmaker cast the actress in the role and so effortlessly manage to tie her and Emma's performances together?
"It's pretty formidable to try and find Emma Stone's, you know, child version," Gillespie admitted. "Because she's such a nuanced actor, and she's got such a strength and humor to her performances all the time. So, we did a pretty exhaustive search in London looking for that and Tipper really had that sort of spunk that we were looking for. That sort of defiance and that sort of, you know, conviction to her beliefs. And that was really critical for this child growing up in a system that didn't allow for that in the '60s."
"Just that fire in her eyes was really critical to find and be able to translate that to when she grows up. So I was thrilled with everything that Tipper brought to the party," he continued. "We go through a very quick montage for three minutes in her school days, and you really get a sense of who this character is. I mean, literally from the look in her eye and her defiance. And she does it with humor, which is excellent."
We obviously really appreciate Craig's in-depth and well thought out answer, and are sure you'll be just as impressed when you get to watch Cruella later this week. Our review hits the site tomorrow, so be sure to check back then. In the meantime, check out my social media reaction below: