Willem Dafoe Had Emma Stone Slap Him 20 Times off Camera for Their Film 'And' | "That's What You Want From Actors"

A good actor often gets in the skin of their character so well that it doesn't feel like they are acting. A seasoned actor also knows when to switch from reel life to real life. However, for method actors who want to perfect their on-screen roles, reel life can spill over to real life. Is Emma Stone one of them? Not really. It's the American Psycho actor, Willem Dafoe who wants to perfect his on-screen moments for the upcoming film, And, so well that he willingly got slapped by Stone, reports The New York Times. The duo previously worked on Poor Things together.

While working on their upcoming film And directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, the 34-year-old actress and 67-year-old actor rehearsed well. They opened up about their creative process in a Dafoe profile for The New York Times. According to the stars, there's a scene in the film where Stone slaps Dafoe in the face. To make the action look more believable, Dafoe reportedly had his costar slap him in real life around 20 times (Ouch!).

Stone also disclosed what she thought of Dafoe as an actor. "There's this instinct to perform that many actors have — the 'look at me, look at me!' kind of performer. He's the opposite of that. Maybe it's changed through the years. A lot of actors I bond with have been doing this for a long time, and you know they've gone from 'I' to 'We,'" she said. Director Lanthimos praised Dafoe for his commitment, saying "that's what you want from actors... to want to be part of it in any way."

Details about And are still under wraps. However, it was reported in October 2022 that the film, which has finished filming in New Orleans would also star Jesse Plemons, Joe Alwyn, Margaret Qualley, and Hong Chau. Director Lanthimos' previous films include The Lobster (2015) and The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017). Poor Things, the next feature film by the Greek writer-director is set to be released in 2023. He has previously worked with the Cruella star and Alwyn on the Oscar-nominated The Favourite for which Stone was nominated for Best Supporting Actress along with Rachel Weisz, reports People. 

Dafoe hosted Saturday Night Live for the first time in January 2022, following his villainous return to the Spider-Man franchise as Norman Osborn/Green Goblin. Dafoe joked about his roles over the years in his opening monologue, responding to criticism that his acting is "over the top."

"I can't help that I have an expressive face. I can't control it. I don't think about controlling it. I'm not one of those subtle actors like Nicolas Cage or Al Pacino," the Nightmare Alley actor explained. "Maybe that's why people come up to me and say, 'You know what role you'd be perfect for? The Joker.' It's always nice to hear that you got the vibe of a sociopath." Well, we may choose to agree or not agree to Dafoe claiming that he has sociopath vibes but we were sure startled to learn that he wanted to be slapped by Stone 20 times.