Sharon Stone details moving on from ‘influence and power’ in Hollywood

Sharon Stone has reflected on moving beyond her Hollywood “sex symbol” image as she was honoured for her philanthropy and advocacy for women’s rights at Variety’s Power of Women event.

The 68-year-old Basic Instinct star was among the principal honourees at the annual event at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles this week, alongside Jennifer Hudson, Melissa McCarthy and television executive Pearlena Igbokwe.

Sharon was recognised for her advocacy and support for the American Civil Liberties Union, while comedian Iliza Shlesinger hosted the ceremony.

Speaking to Page Six on the red carpet, Sharon said, “I think that it’s very important to recognize that we are all women of power and influence, because women, by the very fact of being a woman, [are] powerful and influential.”

Sharon pointed to the everyday decisions made by women, from raising children to choices involving food and their homes.

“It’s a woman who makes all of the basic day-to-day choices in the world,” she said, adding, “I think it’s really important to think about that. That is very powerful and very influential.”

Sharon also urged women to “use that power and influence in a compassionate, thoughtful, meaningful way, and in ways that take care of each other.”

Inside the ceremony, the Casino star spoke about her journey through Hollywood and the image that became attached to her after her breakthrough as Catherine Tramell opposite Michael Douglas in the 1992 erotic thriller Basic Instinct.

She said, “I am a product of the American dream.”

Sharon referred to her father, Joseph William Stone II, who worked in a factory in Pennsylvania, as she discussed her journey from her upbringing to international fame.

“I have gone the distance from being a sex symbol… and I did it by keeping both of these tired feet that hurt from wearing four-inch heels on poured concrete floors.”

She continued, “I kept them firmly planted on terra firma because there is no gray in the red, white and blue."

“So, the power that I feel in the power of women, I get because I am standing in the middle of you, and I do not stand alone when I stand here,” the actress said.

Sharon Stone’s appearance comes after she returned to television in the third and final season of HBO’s Euphoria, joining a cast headed by Zendaya and Sydney Sweeney.