Sharon Stone Strikes Again

They needn't have worried about Stone's age--she's in amazing shape. "This will probably be my final nude hurrah," she says. "Christ, to say I'm middle-aged would be hopeful. But I'm not terribly self-conscious about being nude. There's a scene in the finale that is quite brazen." No kidding. Stone is entirely naked for part of it, and in a hot tub with her breasts above-water for the rest. It's a violent, rather than sexual, scene, and an unnerving one. "She used to scream before every take--just absolutely scream at the top of her voice," says costar Morrissey, calling from a cab in London. "It was quite strange, to the point where it really freaked me out. I realized it was just to release the tension, and I thought it was very funny, but it's quite an un-British thing to do."

But it is a very Stone thing to do. She has had to deal with a good deal of drama in recent years, including a small brain hemorrhage that left her hospitalized. The actress has two sons, Roan, 5, and Laird, almost 1, though her marriage to San Francisco Examiner editor Phil Bronstein ended in 2003. When the talk turns to dating, she's asked if men have sometimes fallen in love with the fantasy of Sharon Stone, rather than with the woman herself. "I've had that experience," she says, curled up on the sofa. "You date somebody and three months into the relationship you get the flu and he's so furious, and he goes to his front-row seats at the basketball game without you because he doesn't want to be with the person who gets the flu." She pauses. "I stopped dating about a year ago, and decided to take some time to heal myself from a variety of traumas, that being one of them. I've come to recognize that I'm special, and my children are special, and I deserve to be treasured like anyone does." Here's a tip for anyone looking to win her heart. "Guys who think they're cool aren't cool to me," she says. "The kind of guy I'm looking for would want to wear SpongeBob pajamas and sit in the front row at the school play. Do you know what I mean?"

On screen, of course, she doesn't mind indulging in fantasies. Stone did subtle work in last year's "Broken Flowers"--and does a powerful supporting turn in "Alpha Dog," due out this year--but "Basic Instinct 2" is a full-on star vehicle. Regardless of what critics say, there's no denying that at a time when young actors whine about how conflicted they are about fame and show up to premières looking like they just rolled out of bed, there's something refreshing about a movie star who acts like one. No one will say this movie is Stone's best, but the woman knows how to entertain. "I mean, come on," she says. "People want to have fun. We're helping people depart from their conflicted day. Sure, I have conflicted days, but I don't think people in Omaha want to hear about them." So she'll keep the flame of old-Hollywood glamour alive as long as she can. "Hey, if I get to pick, I pick that ," she says, and laughs. "Shine the klieg light over here, baby."

© 2006