Sharon Stone says US is in state of ‘ignorant, arrogant adolescence’

Sharon Stone has hit out against the “extraordinary naivety” she feels has steered the US into a period of “ignorant, arrogant adolescence”.

In a panel discussion at the Torino film festival on Monday, where she accepted a lifetime achievement award, the actor and artist was asked about the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, which fell on the same day.

In answer, she referred to the recent re-election of Donald Trump to the presidency, saying: “We have to stop and think about who we choose for government. And if, in fact, we are actually choosing our government or if the government is choosing itself.”

Stone continued: “You know, Italy has seen fascism. Italy has seen these things. You guys, you understand what happens. You have seen this before.

“My country is in adolescence. Adolescence is very arrogant. Adolescence thinks it knows everything. Adolescence is naive and ignorant and arrogant. And we are in our ignorant, arrogant adolescence.”

Stone went on to give evidence to support her claim, saying that the US was populated largely by “Americans who don’t travel, who 80% don’t have a passport, who are uneducated, are in their extraordinary naivety. What I can say is that the only way that we can help with these issues is to help each other.”

She then returned to the question, saying that combatting violence against women shouldn’t just be the purview of women, but that men “must be very clear minded and understand that your friends who are not good men are dangerous, violent men”.

Stone’s sentiments echoed those of the actor Alec Baldwin, who appeared at the festival to present a screening of his 1990 film The Hunt for Red October.

“Americans are very uninformed about reality, what’s really going on,” he said.

He continued: “With climate change, Ukraine, Israel – you name it. All the biggest topics in the world, Americans have an appetite for a little bit of information.”