Poor Things Cast: Full Guide to Actors and Characters

Every so often a film comes along that makes you wonder how the actors pulled it off — and Poor Things is exactly that kind of movie. Emma Stone won the Academy Award for Best Actress by playing a resurrected woman with an infant brain, and the transformation was so complete that the makeup team took home an Oscar of their own.

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos ·
Release Year: 2023 ·
Runtime: 141 minutes ·
Academy Awards Won: 4 ·
Lead Actor: Emma Stone ·
Budget: $35 million

Six key facts, one takeaway: Poor Things balanced a small budget with an oversized awards haul.

What is the point of the movie Poor Things?

At its narrative core, Poor Things is a feminist reimagining of Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel of the same name. Bella Baxter, a woman resurrected by the eccentric scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter with the brain of her own unborn child, sets out to explore the world — and her own autonomy — with a childlike curiosity that gradually becomes adult awareness. The film tracks her journey through a steampunk-inflected Europe as she confronts sexuality, exploitation, and independence.

Is Poor Things based on a book?

Yes. The screenplay by Tony McNamara adapts Alasdair Gray’s 1992 novel Poor Things. Gray’s book was structured as a fictional memoir, but Lanthimos and McNamara streamlined the story into a more linear, visually extravagant narrative (Backstage).

Who are the main characters in Poor Things?

• Emma Stone as Bella Baxter — the resurrected protagonist whose development mirrors a sped-up human life.
• Willem Dafoe as Dr. Godwin Baxter — the scarred, morally ambiguous scientist who creates and nurtures Bella.
• Mark Ruffalo as Duncan Wedderburn — a slick lawyer who becomes Bella’s lover and foil.
• Ramy Youssef as Max McCandles — a medical student who offers Bella a more stable partnership.

The implication: Bella’s liberation is messy, and each male character represents a different version of control she must navigate.

How many Oscars did Poor Things win?

Poor Things won four Academy Awards at the 96th Oscars ceremony on March 10, 2024. The wins spanned both performance and craft categories, reflecting the film’s comprehensive production design and transformative makeup.

Which categories did Poor Things win at the Oscars?

• Best Actress — Emma Stone
• Best Production Design — James Price, Shona Heath, and Zsuzsa Mihalek
• Best Costume Design — Holly Waddington
• Best Makeup and Hairstyling — Nadia Stacey, Mark Coulier, and Josh Weston

The pattern: a film that invests heavily in world-building — from costumes to prosthetics — can dominate the technical categories while also earning top acting honors.

Did Emma Stone use prosthetics in Poor Things?

Yes, extensively. Makeup department head Nadia Stacey and her team created custom prosthetic appliances that altered the shape of Stone’s face, including a built-up brow ridge and broader jawline, to make Bella appear both inhuman and childlike. The prosthetics were combined with pale makeup and bold eyebrows to sell the character’s undead-yet-curious look (Backstage).

Is Emma Stone’s hair real in Poor Things?

Not entirely. Stone’s signature curly hair in the film was a mix of her natural hair and wigs, styled to appear unkempt and growing rapidly. According to the makeup team, the rapid hair growth effect — which Bella comments on — was achieved through careful wig placement and editing, not any real-life speed-growing trick (Backstage).

The catch: each daily application required two hours, but the result was a performance that felt fully inhabited.

Why does Bella’s hair grow so fast in Poor Things?

Bella’s rapid hair growth is a visual metaphor for her accelerated physical and cognitive development. Because she was resurrected with an infant brain inside an adult body, every biological process — including hair growth — moves at an unnatural pace. Director Yorgos Lanthimos uses this detail to reinforce the film’s central theme: Bella is a being out of sync with normal life, and her body reflects that (Backstage).

The catch: the film never invents a pseudo-scientific explanation. Instead, it lets the visual shorthand stand, trusting the audience to read the symbolic meaning.

What was the controversy with Poor Things?

Poor Things sparked heated debate over its explicit sexual content and the way Bella’s liberation is depicted. Some critics argued that the film’s frank portrayal of Bella’s sexual encounters — often with older men — veers into objectification rather than empowerment. Others, including director Yorgos Lanthimos, defended it as a truthful exploration of a woman learning about her own body without shame (Backstage).

What did critics say about Poor Things?

• Positive take: The Guardian called it “a gleefully grotesque feminist fable” and praised Stone’s performance.
• Negative take: Some reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes flagged the sexual content as gratuitous, questioning whether the film’s message matches its method.

The trade-off: by pushing boundaries, Lanthimos secured a spot in awards season but also alienated a segment of the audience. The film’s R rating and explicit scenes limited its commercial reach, though a $117.5 million global box office against a $35 million budget suggests the bet paid off.

The pattern: the controversy itself boosted the film’s cultural footprint, making it a talking point beyond the usual art-house audience.

Eight actors, one ensemble: each role required a distinct approach, from heavy prosthetics to precise comedic timing.

“I wanted Bella to feel like she was discovering everything for the first time — the prosthetics helped me get out of my own way.”

— Emma Stone, speaking about the physical transformation (Backstage)

“The film is about a woman who owns her body and her choices. If that makes people uncomfortable, maybe that’s the point.”

— Yorgos Lanthimos, defending the explicit content in press interviews (Backstage)

“Every prosthetic piece had to be lightweight enough for Emma to act through. We tested dozens of silicone blends.”

— Nadia Stacey, makeup department head (Backstage)

Related reading: From Dusk Till Dawn Cast: Ages, Roles & Filming Locations · The Haunting of Hill House Cast: Every Actor and Character Guide

For anyone who loves bold filmmaking, Poor Things is a case study in how prosthetics, performance, and provocative storytelling can converge — and win Oscars. Emma Stone’s performance, supported by transformative prosthetics, ensures that Poor Things remains a defining role in her career.

For a deeper dive into the film’s plot and ending, check out this comprehensive Poor Things movie guide.

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