Sharon Vonne Stone was born on March 10, 1958, inMeadville, Pennsylvania,[2] toMethodist[3] parents Dorothy Marie (née Lawson), an accountant, and Joseph William Stone II,[4] atool and die manufacturer and former factory worker. She has three siblings.[5][6][7] She is mostly of Scots-Irish and English descent.[8] She has some Irish ancestry.[9] In a 2013 interview withConan O'Brien, she stated that her Irish ancestors arrived in the United States during theGreat Famine.[10] She has a reportedIQ of 154.[11] Stone was considered academically gifted as a child and entered the second grade when she was five years old.[12][13] Stone said that she and her sister were bothsexually abused as children by their maternal grandfather, in an interview toThe New York Times in March 2021, while promoting her memoirThe Beauty of Living Twice.[14] At 14, her neck was badly injured whilebreaking a horse when the animal bucked as it charged toward a washing line.[15]
While attendingEdinboro State College, Stone won the title of MissCrawford County, Pennsylvania, and in 1976,[17] was a candidate forMiss Pennsylvania.[6] One of the pageant judges told her to quit college and move to New York City to become a fashion model.[6] Stone left Meadville and moved in with an aunt inNew Jersey, and by 1977, she had been signed byFord Modeling Agency in New York City.[18] She soon moved to Europe, living for a year in Milan and then in Paris. While living there, she decided to quit modeling and pursue acting. "So I packed my bags, moved back to New York, and stood in line to be anextra in aWoody Allen movie", she later recalled.[19][20][21][22] At 20, Stone was cast for a brief role in Allen's dramedyStardust Memories (1980)[6] and had a speaking part a year later in the horror filmDeadly Blessing (1981).
InPaul Verhoeven'sTotal Recall (1990), a science fiction action film oppositeArnold Schwarzenegger, Stone played the seemingly loving wife of a construction worker. The film received favorable reviews and made $261.2 million worldwide, giving Stone's career a major boost,[6] leading to her being cast in five feature films released throughout 1991. She played whatRoger Ebert described as the "bad girl" in the romantic comedyHe Said, She Said,[27] a sexually repressed woman in the psychological thrillerScissors, a wealthy blonde in the crime dramaDiary of a Hitman,[28] a provocative young photojournalist in the thrillerYear of the Gun and the agent and former lover of a writer in the neo-noirWhere Sleeping Dogs Lie.
In another Verhoeven film, the erotic thrillerBasic Instinct (1992),[6] she took on the role that made her a star, playingCatherine Tramell, a brilliantbisexual novelist and allegedserial killer. Several actresses at the time turned down the role, mostly because of thenudity required.[29]Critical response towardsBasic Instinct was mixed, but Stone received critical acclaim for her "star-making performance";[30]Peter Travers ofRolling Stone remarked that "Verhoeven's cinematic wet dream delivers the goods, especially when Sharon Stone struts on with enough come-on carnality to singe the screen," and observed of the actress' portrayal: "Stone, a former model, is a knockout; she even got a rise out of Ah-nold in Verhoeven'sTotal Recall. But being the bright spot in too many dull movies (He Said, She Said;Irreconcilable Differences) stalled her career. ThoughBasic Instinct establishes Stone as abombshell for the 1990s, it also shows she can nail a laugh or shade an emotion with equal aplomb."[31] Australian critic Shannon J. Harvey ofThe Sunday Times called the film "one of the best films of the early1990s, doing more for female empowerment than any feminist rally. Stone – in her star-making performance – is as hot and sexy as she is ice-pick cold."[32] For the part, Stone earned aGolden Globe Award nomination forBest Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama, fourMTV Movie Awards nominations, and aGolden Raspberry Award nomination forWorst New Star for her "tribute toTheodore Cleaver". The film also became one of the most financially successful productions of the 1990s, grossing US$352.9 million worldwide.[33]
In 1993, Stone played afemme fatale in the erotic thrillerSliver, based onIra Levin'seponymous novel about the mysterious occurrences in a privately owned New York City high-rise apartment building. The film was heavily panned by critics and earned Stone aGolden Raspberry Award nomination forWorst Actress but became a commercial success, grossing US$116.3 million at the international box office.[34] She also made a cameo appearance in the action filmLast Action Hero (1993), reuniting with Arnold Schwarzenegger. In 1994, Stone appeared as the wife of an architect oppositeRichard Gere in the dramaIntersection, and as a woman who entices a bomb expert she is involved with into destroying the criminal gang that killed her family, alongsideSylvester Stallone, in the action thrillerThe Specialist. WhileIntersection found limited success,The Specialist made US$170.3 million worldwide.[35] For her work in both films, she won aGolden Raspberry Award and aStinkers Bad Movie Award for Worst Actress, but was nominated for theMTV Movie Award for Most Desirable Female forThe Specialist.
Stone portrayed the mistress of a cruel school master in the psychological thrillerDiabolique (1996), a woman waiting on death row for a brutal double murder in the dramaLast Dance (1996), and a biologist in the suspense filmSphere (1998). The three aforementioned films were panned by critics and failed to find an audience in theaters.[41][42] In 1998, Stone also lent her voice for the successful animated filmAntz,[43] and played the mother of a 13-year-old boy suffering fromMorquio syndrome in the dramaThe Mighty, which garnered a positive critical response.[44][45] Stone was nominated for theGolden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the lattermost.
Her turn as a street-wise, middle-aged moll inGloria (1999), a remake of the 1980film of the same name, proved to be a critical and commercial misfire.[46][47][48] A titular role followed in 1999 with the comedyThe Muse, playing the inspiration of an esteemed screenwriter. Wade Major, a critic forBoxoffice, found her portrayal of a "dizzy Muse" to be "the film's most delightful surprise",[49] but most reviews were ultimately lukewarm. Helmut Voss, then president of theHollywood Foreign Press Association, which gave the annualGolden Globe Awards, ordered all 82 of its members to return gift luxury watches sent by either Stone orOctober Films (now merged intoFocus Features) as these were considered to be promotions for a nomination for Stone's performance in the film.[50] She ultimately received the nomination forBest Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical.
In 2000, Stone played a lesbian trying to start a family, oppositeEllen DeGeneres, in theHBO television filmIf These Walls Could Talk 2 and starred as an exotic dancer, alongsideBilly Connolly, in the comedyBeautiful Joe. While she was recognized byWomen in Film with her secondLucy Award for her performance inIf These Walls Could Talk 2,[40]Beautiful Joe premiered oncable television instead of receiving a theatrical release in North America.[51][52][53][54][55] Nathan Rabin ofThe A.V. Club, who had been critical of Stone's previous films, wrote that "nothing she's done has been quite as shameless or appalling asBeautiful Joe, a toxic piece of whimsy that ranks among the worst films of 2000".[56]
Following her September 2001 hospitalization for asubarachnoid hemorrhage, Stone took a hiatus from screen acting. She faced professional challenges as she was in the process of recovery. She felt that she had "lost [her] place" in Hollywood, and during a 2015 interview withUSA Today, she remarked: "[When] you find yourself at the back of the line in your business, as I did, [you] have to figure yourself out all over again."[57] She returned to the screen in 2003, when she took on a three-episode arc as Sheila Carlisle, an attorney who believes she can communicate with God, in the eighth season ofThe Practice. For her performance, she received thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series.[58]
Stone attempted a return to the mainstream with roles in the filmsCold Creek Manor (2003), withDennis Quaid, andCatwoman (2004), withHalle Berry. In the mystery psychological thrillerCold Creek Manor, she and Quaid played a couple terrorized by the former owner of the rural estate they bought inforeclosure.Variety magazine remarked in its review for the film that both actors "fish in vain to find any angles to play in their dimension-free characters".[59] The superhero filmCatwoman saw her play the age-obsessed CEO of a cosmetic company and the story's antagonist. While both films flopped at the box office,Catwoman is considered by many critics to beone of the worst movies of all time.[60][61]
Her next film release wasJim Jarmusch's dramedyBroken Flowers (2005), in which Stone took on the role of a grasping and overly eager closet organizer who re-connects with a former womanizer (played byBill Murray).[62] Unlike her previous few film outings,Broken Flowers was met with critical acclaim, upon its premiere at Cannes,[63] where it was nominated for thePalme d'Or and won theGrand Prix.[64]Far Out Magazine ranked Stone's role among one of her "10 best performances",[65] whileNew York Magazine remarked: "Sharon Stone, playing a widow who's half-hippie, half-working-class-tough, demonstrates that, given the right part, she's still not merely sexy but knockabout funny and sly".[66] In 2005, she was namedOfficer of the Order of Arts and Letters in France.[67]
After years of litigation,Basic Instinct 2 was released on March 31, 2006. A reason for a long delay in releasing the film was reportedly Stone's dispute with the filmmakers over the nudity in the film; she wanted more while they wanted less. Stone told an interviewer, "We are in a time of odd repression and if a popcorn movie allows us to create a platform for discussion, wouldn't that be great?"[68] Despite an estimated budget of US$70 million,Basic Instinct 2 placed only tenth in gross on its opening weekend with a meager US$3.2 million and finished with a total domestic gross of under US$6 million. Stone appeared inNick Cassavetes's crime dramaAlpha Dog (2006), oppositeBruce Willis, playing Olivia Mazursky, the mother of a real-life murder victim; she wore afatsuit for the role.[69] The film premiered at the2006 Sundance Film Festival and was an arthouse success.[70] She made part of an ensemble cast inEmilio Estevez's dramaBobby (2006), about the hours leading up to theassassination of Robert F. Kennedy. Stone received favorable comments for her performance, particularly a scene alongsideLindsay Lohan.[71][72] As a member of the cast, she was nominated for theScreen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, but won in theHollywood Film Festival Award for Best Ensemble Cast.[73]
In 2013, Stone played the mother of porn actressLinda Lovelace (Amanda Seyfried) in thebiographical dramaLovelace,[79] and a dermatologist seeking aménage à trois in theWoody Allen–John Turturro comedyFading Gigolo.[80] Both films were released in limited theaters to a decent critical reception;Glenn Kenny, in his review forFading Gigolo, found Stone to be "splendidly understated" in what he described as "a New York story through and through [...] often funny, sometimes moving, occasionally goofy as hell".[81] In 2014, she starred as an actress-turned-publisher, oppositeRiccardo Scamarcio, in the Italian dramedyA Golden Boy (Un ragazzo d'oro), directed byPupi Avati,[82][83][84] and portrayed America's first female Vice President in theTNT action drama seriesAgent X, which only aired for one season.[85] Stone next played an adoptive mother in the dramaMothers and Daughters (2016),[86][87] a "lineman widow" and the "alcoholic mom" of a high-wire worker in the action filmLife on the Line (2016),[88][89] and a greedy billionaire in the dramaRunning Wild (2017).[90] These three films all received a VOD release, to varying responses.[91]James Franco's biographical comedyThe Disaster Artist (2017), which featured Stone asIris Burton, the agent of actorGreg Sestero, was a critical and commercial success, and was chosen by theNational Board of Review as one of the top ten films of 2017.[92]
InRolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese (2019), apseudo-documentary film coveringBob Dylan's 1975Rolling Thunder Revue concert tour,[96] Stone played an exaggerated version of herself. The film was released onNetflix, to critical acclaim.Owen Gleiberman described her appearance as a "marketing hook" and further stated: "The presence of Sharon Stone embodies the spirit of [the Hollywood] machine. She has always been a good actress (probably better than many know; just watch her inCasino), but her fame will forever rest on a certain crudely riveting but debased high-budget exploitation thriller".[97] She reunited with Soderbergh forThe Laundromat (2019), in which she played a harried realtor, oppositeMeryl Streep.
InNetflix's psychological thriller seriesRatched (2020), a prequel toMiloš Forman's 1975 filmOne Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest developed byRyan Murphy, Stone portrayed a wealthy heiress who hires a hit man to kill a doctor for disfiguring her son. Intrigued by Murphy's pitch for her character, which he wrote for her, Stone described the part as "completely insane. And at the same time she thinks she's really a loving mother who has her shit together".[98][99] The series garnered a decent critical response and was viewed by 48 million people in its first four weeks of release.[100] In 2020 Stone appeared as herself in an introduction to the fifth episode ofThe New Pope, where she had an audience withJohn Malkovich as Pope John Paul III.[101]
For her leading roles in erotic and adult-themed feature films such asBasic Instinct,Sliver, andThe Specialist, Stone cemented what was described as a "tough-talking, no-underwear, voyeuristic, cool-as-ice,sex symbol" status during the 1990s.[104] She has appeared on the covers and pictorials of over 300 celebrity and fashion magazines throughout her four-decade acting career.[105] She graced the June–July 1986 cover of FrenchVogue, and to coincide with the release ofTotal Recall, she posed nude for the July 1990 issue ofPlayboy, flaunting the muscles she had developed in preparation for the film. FollowingBasic Instinct, photographerGeorge Hurrell took a series of photographs of Stone,Sherilyn Fenn,Julian Sands,Raquel Welch,Eric Roberts, andSean Penn. Stone, who was Hurrell's reportedly last sitting before his death in 1992,[106] is also a collector of the photographer's original prints and wrote the foreword to the bookHurrell's Hollywood. In 1993, she appeared inPirelli's commercial,Driving Instinct,[107][108] in 2005, became the face ofDior's Capture skincare line,[109] and in 2016, starred withPaul Sculfor in Airfield's (de)Fashion Is a Lovestory short film.[110][111][112]
Stone's public and professional profiles have been strongly tied to her appearance and sex appeal. She has ranked among the "50 most beautiful people in the world" byPeople in 1992,[113] the "100 sexiest stars in film history" byEmpire in 1995 and 1997,[114] and the "25 sexiest stars of the century" byPlayboy in 1999.[115] She has also been the subject of four television documentary specials,[105] and several biographies have been written about her.[116][117][118] On her sex symbol image, Stone toldOprah Winfrey onOprah Prime in 2014: "It's a pleasure for me now. I mean, I'm gonna be 56 years old. If people want to think I'm a sex symbol, it's, like, yeah. Think it up. You know. I mean, like, good for me".[119] She posed nude for the September 2015 issue ofHarper's Bazaar, in which she stated: "At a certain point you start asking yourself, 'What really is sexy?' It's not just the elevation of your boobs. It's being present and having fun and liking yourself enough to like the person that's with you".[120]
On January 28, 2005, Stone helped solicit pledges for $1 million in five minutes for mosquito nets inTanzania,[121] turning a panel onAfrican poverty into an impromptufundraiser at theWorld Economic Forum inDavos, Switzerland. Many observers, includingUNICEF, criticized her actions by claiming that Stone had reacted instinctively to the words of Tanzanian PresidentBenjamin Mkapa, because she had not done her research on the causes, consequences, and methods of preventingmalaria.[122] Of the $1 million pledged, only $250,000 was actually raised. In order to fulfill the promise to send $1 million worth of bed nets to Tanzania, UNICEF contributed $750,000.[123] This diverted funds from other UNICEF projects.[123] According to prominent economistXavier Sala-i-Martin, officials are largely unaware of what happened with the bed nets. Some were delivered to the local airport.[123] These reportedly were stolen and later resurfaced as wedding dresses on the localblack market.[122][123]
Well you know it was very interesting because at first, you know, I'm not happy about the way the Chinese are treating theTibetans because I don't think anyone should be unkind to anyone else. And so I have been very concerned about how to think and what to do about that because I don't like that. And I had been this, you know, concerned about, oh how should we deal with theOlympics because they are not being nice to theDalai Lama, who is a good friend of mine. And then this earthquake and all this stuff happened, and then I thought, is thatkarma? When you're not nice that the bad things happen to you?[124]
One of China's biggest cinema chains reacted to Stone's comments by declaring it would not show her films in its theaters.[125] The founder of the UME Cineplex chain and the chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers,Ng See-yuen, called Stone's comments "inappropriate", and said the UME Cineplex chain would no longer present her films.[125]Dior advertisements featuring Stone's image were dropped from all ads in China amid the public uproar.[126] Stone was removed from the2008 Shanghai International Film Festival guest list, and the event's organizers considered banning the actress permanently.[127] Dior China had originally posted an apology in Stone's name, but Stone later denied making the apology during an interview withThe New York Times, saying "I'm not going to apologize. I'm certainly not going to apologize for something that isn't real and true – not for face creams," although she did admit that she had "sounded like an idiot."[128] However, after the interview, Stone released a statement entitled "In my own words by Sharon Stone" in which she said "I could not be more regretful of that mistake. It was unintentional. I apologize. Those words were never meant to be hurtful to anyone."[129]
In 1984, she met television producer Michael Greenburg on the set ofThe Vegas Strip War, a television film he produced and she starred in. They married the same year. In 1986, Greenburg was herline producer onAllan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold. The couple separated three years later, and their divorce was finalized in 1990.[133]
In 1993, Stone metWilliam J. MacDonald on the set of the filmSliver, which he co-produced. MacDonald left his wife for Stone and became engaged to her. They separated one year later in 1994.[138] After they separated, Stone returned the engagement ring viaFedEx.[139] While working on the filmThe Quick and the Dead in 1994, Stone met Bob Wagner, a first assistant director, and they became engaged.[139]
In 2015, Stone was guest of honor at the Pilosio Building Peace Award inMilan.[154] She began an impromptu auction on stage in front of a crowd of CEOs from the construction industry and other dignitaries. She gained enough pledges to build 28 schools in Africa.[155]
^Marc Maron (March 5, 2018)."Episode 895 – Sharon Stone".WTF with Marc Maron Podcast.Archived from the original on April 18, 2018. RetrievedApril 17, 2018.
^Rotunda, Marie."In Your Own Words: A flashback to Sharon Stone, competing to become Miss Pennsylvania 1976".Naples Daily News.Naples, Florida.Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. RetrievedJune 2, 2021.On the other hand, at 17, Sharon was a real pageant novice. We became fast friends during pageant week in Altoona, Pa. I was impressed by her all-American pretty looks and smarts. She was very confident sharing with me that she was going to be the next Marilyn Monroe. I was a little surprised at her remark since she weighed about 145 (or more) pounds. During the talent segment, she recited the Gettysburg Address with sparkles in her hair. During the evening gown competition, she announced to the audience that she was going to win an Academy Award. She did not finish in the Top 10 that evening. The following year, in June of 1977, as I was relinquishing my Miss Pennsylvania title, Sharon came to the pageant with her mother on the final night, she said, "to specifically thank me for helping her the year before." Sharon was totally transformed. At a statuesque 5 foot 9, she now weighed about 115 pounds. She wasn't just pretty anymore. She was beautiful. I was thrilled when she told me she had signed a modeling contract with the prestigious Ford Modeling Agency in New York City
^"The 50 Hottest Models Turned Actresses".Complex Magazine. May 18, 2012.Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. RetrievedOctober 7, 2015.Modeling Credentials: She was signed by Ford Modeling Agency in 1977 and worked for a time as a model in Europe.
^Stone, Sharon (2021). "Role Models".The Beauty of Living Twice (First ed.). New York:Alfred A. Knopf.ISBN9780525656760.OCLC1234479428.I got a call from my friend Riccardo Bertoni, who was an extras casting agent. He said that he knew that there was a call for a Woody Allen movie, and I should go. I was twenty, still in New York, trying to book modeling work by going out on 'go-sees.'
^Peden, Lauren David (June 20, 1993)."FILM; Seen the One Where Arnold Sells Noodles?".The New York Times.Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. RetrievedMay 15, 2021.In Ms. Stone's Pirelli ad, the star steps off an airplane and into a waiting car.
^"SHARON STONE FOR DIOR".British Vogue. October 4, 2005.Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. RetrievedFebruary 9, 2022.
^Schuller, Kristian[in German];AIRFIELD[in German] (February 25, 2016)."Fashion is a Love Story".AirfieldFashion. via: YouTube. Archived fromthe original on October 29, 2021. RetrievedJune 2, 2021.AIRFIELD shows a cinematic love story with Hollywood star Sharon Stone andPaul Sculfor. Let yourself be enchanted by the story of a contemporary, self-confident woman who loves to travel, in fashion that still looks fresh and glamorous even after the longest trip – staged by star photographerKristian Schuller.
^Sharpe, Olivia (July 22, 2016)."Sharon Stone: The Interview". London: Luxury. Archived fromthe original on August 9, 2016. RetrievedAugust 1, 2016.Hollywood actress, model and philanthropist Sharon Stone speaks to us about women in Hollywood, being sexy at 58 and starring in Airfield's S/S16 campaign
^Stone, Sharon (2021). "Kitchen-Sink Irish".The Beauty of Living Twice (First ed.). New York:Alfred A. Knopf.ISBN9780525656760.OCLC1234479428.She had fibroid tumors in her uterus and I'm sure the endometriosis that both my sister and I inherited and that was what disallowed us to have our own children."
