Spirit Awards: Jesse Eisenberg Calls ‘A Real Pain’ Producer Emma Stone His “Fairy Godmother”
During his acceptance speech for best screenplay at the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards, A Real Pain writer and director Jesse Eisenberg called Emma Stone, a producer on the film, his “fairy godmother.”
“I met Emma when we were in Zombieland together 2009 and since then — I write little magazine articles and little things on McSweeney’s, and she’s the only person, I’m including my mom here, who would take little screenshots of it over the last 15 years and send me things like, ‘This is such a funny line!'” Eisenberg said onstage, while Stone was in the audience. “She was, definitely still [is], the most famous person I know, and yet also the most dedicated to encouraging me as a writer. I think about her not as my producer, but like a fairy godmother, that I am riding the coattails of her goodwill. And I think it’s so important that somebody like her, who is so unbelievably successful in all these mainstream movies, people like me and Julio [Torres], and Jane [Schoenbrun], to try to produce art movies with all the goodwill that she’s amassed so brightly and observably over the last couple of years. Thanks, Emma.”
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Stone produced the film alongside Eisenberg, Jennifer Semler, Ali Herting, Dave McCary and Ewa Puszczynska. Eisenberg mentioned Torres and Schoenbrun because Stone produced their projects Fantasma and Problemista, and I Saw The TV Glow, respectively, which were also nominated at the Spirit Awards.
A Real Pain was also nominated in the best supporting actor category for Kieran Culkin, who plays Eisenberg’s cousin in the film. The film was nominated in the best screenplay category alongside Heretic, My Old Ass, A Different Man and I Saw the TV Glow. Eisenberg is also nominated for best original screenplay at the upcoming 97th Academy Awards.
The awards are being handed out Saturday afternoon in Santa Monica. See the red carpet arrivals and the list of winners.
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