Emma Stone carries her first film

The "Easy A" script had been a hot property, landing on the 2008 Black List - the industry's annual ranking of the best screenplays on the market.

So when Emma Stone heard the script had been optioned by Screen Gems, she immediately tried to elbow her way into a meeting with director Will Gluck.

"I pushed pretty hard to be the first audition," she said. "I was like, 'Please? Can I just go?' . . . It's such a great part. And it's so rare that you find that well-written and that well-formed of a character as a girl in a comedy."

Stone said she clearly felt the weight of carrying a film for the first time and knows it's what many moviegoers will judge her by. "I put an enormous amount of pressure on myself. I went a little cuckoo," she admitted. "I had trouble sleeping. I assume I could compare it to taking finals in a really tough class that you need to get a good grade on."

Nowadays, Stone's plate is full - she's in the middle of shooting a DreamWorks movie based on the bestselling book "The Help" and recently wrapped "Crazy, Stupid, Love," a romantic comedy with Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling and Julianne Moore.