Emma Stone playfully dismisses 'Cruella' comparisons to 'Joker'

In the interview, Stone was asked about comparisons her titular Cruella character is drawing to 2019's Joker. "It’s very different from Joker in many ways," the 32-year-old said. "I would never even remotely compare myself to Joaquin Phoenix. I wish I was more like him."

Director Craig Gillespie added: "There are some really deep, emotional things that Cruella’s dealing with that send her to the villainous darker side. So in that sense, it is [similar]. But it's definitely its own thing. Just to sort of reframe Cruella, I thought it was important to show this darker side of her. But there’s going to be a lot of fun, a lot of humor in it. There's a lot of absolutely delightful banter and rhythm to the style of it, which is different from Joker."

On the surface, to Gillespie's point, there are similarities. Cruella and Joker are both prequels, and its leading stars are both Oscar winners. Phoenix actually won for his portrayal of Arthur Fleck, who eventually devolves into madness as The Joker, while Stone claimed Oscar glory for her leading La La Land role.

The first trailer for Cruella dropped in mid-February to worldwide fanfare:

Stone has already impressed with her British accent as Estella de Vil in 1970s London, drawn to a life of mischief from a young age. Emma Thompson will co-star as famous (or infamous?) fashionista Baroness von Hellman, who plays a pivotal role in Estella's transformation into Cruella—bleeding into the 101 Dalmatians franchise.

Cruella is set for a simultaneous theatrical and Disney Plus release May 28.