18 Fascinating "Cruella" Behind-The-Scenes Facts Every Fan Needs To Know

    I knew those dogs were CGI'ed!

    Sam Cleal
    by Sam Cleal

    BuzzFeed Staff

    1. It was during the filming of La La Land that Emma Stone found out about Cruella.

    Lionsgate

    Emma became attached to the project in 2016, and pursued other roles in Maniac and The Favourite before taking on the iconic Disney villain.

    2. Emma Stone found it easy to relate to this new version of Cruella, specifically because she too tends to compartmentalise her life.

    Emma McIntyre / WireImage / Via Getty Images

    "I compartmentalise a bit – even because my name is actually Emily, so when someone calls me Emma, it's easy for me to know that it has to do with work."

    3. She used her time playing Sally Bowles in Cabaret to inform her work on Cruella.

    Brad Barket / Via Getty Images

    Emma Stone starred in Cabaret on Broadway from 2014 to 2015. "The list of actresses who have played that role is insane", she said. "I realised the only way I could actually do it was to completely forget all that, and play it as if no one had ever played it before. It was the same with Cruella. I can't think about Glenn Close – I have to create an entirely new character."

    4. Speaking of Glenn Close, the movie legend served as an executive producer for Cruella.

    Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

    Glenn famously played the first ever live-action Cruella DeVil in 101 Dalmatians and 102 Dalmatians.

    5. Emily Beecham – who plays Cruella's mother in the film – is just five years older than Emma Stone, who is thirty years younger than Emma Thompson!

    Mike Marsland/Dominique Charriau/John Phillips / WireImage / Via Getty Images

    6. Emma Stone took her inspiration for Cruella's laugh from Hollywood icon Tallulah Bankhead.

    John Kobal Foundation / Via Getty Images

    Emma said she aimed to imitate the Golden Age actor who is rumoured to have been the inspiration for the original animated Cruella – at least in her voice and mannerisms! Emma watched a lot of Tallulah's work to get into character; indeed, we actually see Estella watching her 1944 film Lifeboat at one point in the movie.

    7. Disney would not allow Cruella to use her signature cigarette holder so as not to promote smoking to children.

    Buena Vista Distribution

    "That is not allowed in 2021", Emma Stone told the New York Times. "It was difficult to not have that cigarette holder... I was so excited to have that green plume of smoke in there, but it was not possible."

    8. Two-time Oscar-winning costume designer Jenny Beavan designed all of Cruella’s outfits, and has collaborated with Emma Thompson several times before.

    Laurie Sparham/Disney Enterprises

    To create Cruella’s punk aesthetic, Jenny studied vintage copies of Vogue and took inspiration from designers like John Galliano, Vivienne Westwood, Christian Dior, and Alexander McQueen. Jenny has worked on a plethora of costume-heavy movies including Mad Max: Fury Road and The King's Speech. She also worked alongside Emma on Sense and Sensibility, Howards End, and Remains of the Day.

    9. Emma Stone's favourite costume was the garbage truck gown with a massive 40 foot train!

    Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

    "My very favourite outfit that was absolutely ludicrous was the dress that I wore on the garbage truck... they added [the train] onto the dress at the last minute when I got onto the truck to shoot that part. I mean, it's nothing you would ever be able to even remotely wear in real life."

    10. Emma Thompson found her costumes incredibly trying, and had to have a team of people to help her use the toilet!

    Laurie Sparham/Disney Enterprises

    Apparently, Emma hates wearing underwear at the best of times! But on the set of Cruella, she compared her underwear to a sort of ship's rigging. "Peeing was hard and involved a team of people" she said, "also the shoes were a real challenge... I had wigs as well, so I was a great deal taller than I'm used to being. I used to have to move in and out of spaces sideways."

    11. The dogs were CGI'ed to look nasty.

    Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

    Some viewers may have been able to spot this – I certainly noticed they faces weren't quite real. "Because they were such sweet dogs, they had to CGI them to be a bit nasty", explains Emma Thompson. "They were so nice and they worked so hard."

    12. This is Gizmo the dog's second Disney film!

    Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

    In Cruella he stars as Buddy when he's a puppy, but he also played Froufrou in Beauty and the Beast.

    13. Emma Stone couldn't keep a straight face during takes when Emma Thompson had to throw her lunch out of the window of a moving car.

    Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

    "That's one of my favourite moments", Emma told film critic Ashley Saunders. "The Baroness throws the cloth napkin and the actual fork out of the window. It really made me laugh when we were shooting it. Every time she did it, it made me laugh."

    14. Nicole Kidman was originally considered top choice for the Baroness before Emma Thompson took the role.

    Jason LaVeris / FilmMagic / Via Getty Images

    Other actors considered for that part were Charlize Theron, Julianne Moore, and Demi Moore.

    15. And Dev Patel was in the running for the role of Roger Dearly!

    Vera Anderson / WireImage / Via Getty Images

    It eventually went to Four Lions star Kayvan Novak.

    16. Shooting had to be delayed because Emma Stone broke her shoulder in two places and had to receive physical therapy.

    Laurie Sparham/Disney Enterprises

    Back in 2019, Emma slipped on the floor and seriously injured her shoulder. It happened to be just before a Spice Girls concert in London, which she attended in a sling! The next day, Emma had an x-ray and was told she needed physical therapy to help heal her shoulder, which pushed filming back by two months.

    17. Despite Cruella being an English character, Emma Stone is the latest in a long line of American actors to play the iconic antagonist. In fact, Cruella has never been played by English actor!

    ABC/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Disney Channel

    I mean, maybe someone somewhere has played her and is English, but in the canon of notable Cruella iterations, every actor has been American except for Victoria Smurfit (Once Upon a Time) who is Irish and Michelle Gomez (101 Dalmatian Street) who is Scottish.

    18. Lastly, Cruella was released on 28th May 2021, which would have been Disney star Cameron Boyce’s 22nd birthday.

    Alberto E. Rodriguez / Via Getty Images

    Cameron played the son of Cruella in Disney’s Descendants franchise.

    Cruella is now available in cinemas and to stream on Disney+ with Premiere access.

    Which of these behind-the-scenes fact did you enjoy the most? Tell us in the comments below!