A24’s newest TV series, The Curse, premiered on Showtime on November 10, and with it came an unexpected duo that needs to team up again as soon as possible: Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone.
The Curse follows a recently married couple played by Stone and Fielder, who doubles as a home renovation team whose relationship and attempt to bring eco-friendly abodes to a small New Mexico community are derailed by a supposed curse. The series successfully parodies HGTV home renovation shows while providing commentary on various social issues, but its best part is the performances by Fielder and Stone.
Two Experts with Different Comedic Skillsets
It’s no surprise that Stone is magnetic on screen. Though the Oscar winner sticks mainly to film, she has ample miniseries experience. And while her recent projects, as well as what she’s best known for (Poor Things, Cruella, and La La Land, among others) are mostly dramatic, Stone’s career began in earnest in comedy, with films like Superbad, The House Bunny, Zombieland, and Easy A among her first major credits. Stone is a comedic actress through and through, and her ability to flawlessly weave multiple genres into her performance is on full display in The Curse.
Though it shouldn’t, Fielder’s performance has come as more of a surprise to audiences. Fielder is best known for his hysterically uncomfortable work in Nathan for You, the comedian’s eponymous series in which he gives struggling business owners unexpected advice in an effort to improve their companies. Fielder is so adept at his deadpan style in Nathan for You that it’s almost been to his detriment – audiences genuinely can’t tell whether he’s acting. His performance in 2022’s The Rehearsal followed along those same lines, making his work in The Curse an unexpected delight.
Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone in ‘The Curse’
The Curse Actors Shine Opposite One Another
While Fielder and Stone are excellent apart, their work together is what’s most compelling. Their surprising chemistry is wholly believable, and their different comedic approaches are complementary and usually utterly fantastic. Fielder and Stone’s onscreen magic can be summed up in a seconds-long moment not halfway through the first episode when Fielder’s character gives Stone’s character an unnecessary update on a situation, with her tersely responding and shutting a van door in his face.
If anything is going to upset crowds about The Curse, it’s that Fielder and Stone didn’t work together sooner. But if the acclaim they’re receiving from this current project is any indication, they might return on screen opposite one another in the future.
The Curse is streaming now on Paramount+ with Showtime.
