‘Cruella’ Star Emma Stone Is Punk Rock Cool With First Look at Disney’s ‘101 Dalmatians’ Character

Emma Stone is embracing her inner rocker while mean-mugging as Cruella de Vil in the first poster for Cruella, which Disney debuted Tuesday on social media. The actress is set to play the infamous 101 Dalmatians villain in the live-action prequel to the animated Disney film, following her life as a young designer who becomes obsessed with dogs’ skins.

In the poster, Stone sports dark lipstick and a smokey eye as she stares at the camera, looking similar to her appearance in the first look of the film released in August 2019 at D23. Cruella’s first trailer is scheduled to drop Wednesday, and the film is scheduled to be released on May 28 in theaters. However, it’s unknown at this time if Disney will be doing a hybrid/exclusive release through Disney+ amid the coronavirus pandemic.

At D23, Stone and her Cruella co-star Emma Thompson shared a video message with attendees sharing some of the film’s details, revealing that audiences will get to see the villain’s earliest days turning towards the less-than-legal side of fashion. “It’s 1970s, set in London — can you get out of my eyeliner, please?” Stone said at the time, as per Entertainment Tonight. “It’s punk rock. A great cast.”

Stone later told ET that she drew inspiration both from Glenn Close’s portrayal of Cruella in the 1996 live-action adaptation of 101 Dalmatians and the character from the original 1961 classic animated movie. Close is also serving as an executive producer on Cruella, but Stone said she would be putting her own spin on the criminal’s younger years. “I think she’s obviously the GOAT,” Stone said of Close, “but I also have just loved the cartoon for a really long time.” She added of the film’s timeline, “This comes before [Close’s] story. This leads to her to where she becomes true greatness.”

Cruella also stars Paul Walter Hauser and Joel Fry as the villainous duo Horace and Jasper and Thompson and Mark Strong in supporting roles that have yet to be fleshed out for the public. Craig Gillespie of I, Tonya, directed the film. After the poster dropped, Disney fans weighed in on their first impressions: “Please please, please do not pull Maleficent and rewrite the story so she’s completely justified/the real hero, let an evil villain be an evil villain,” one person tweeted. “That’s why I want her to have her own movie in the first place.” Another added, “Am happy to see Emma is out from her comfort zone! Can’t wait.”