character's personality on that of Ford. Stephanie Zacharek of Time magazine found the film visually arresting yet thematically weak, but credited Adams and Gyllenhaal for making their characters' pain seem genuine. Arrival, directed by Denis Villeneuve and based on Ted Chiang's short story "Story of Your Life", ranks among the most acclaimed films of Adams's career. It focuses on Louise Banks (Adams), a linguist who experiences strange visions when she is hired by the U.S. government to interpret the language of extraterrestrials. Adams was drawn to the idea of playing an intellectual female lead, and connected with the film's theme of unity and compassion. She watched documentaries on linguistics in preparation for the role. Christopher Orr of The Atlantic described Adams's performance as "mesmerizingly open, by turns uplifting and sorrowful". Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan noted her "finely calibrated performance" and asserted that the film was "a showcase for her ability to quietly and effectively meld intelligence, empathy and reserve". Arrival was a commercial success, grossing over $200 million against a production budget of $47 million, and Adams received Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations for Best Actress. Several journalists expressed disappointment over her failure to receive an Oscar nomination for it. She played Lois Lane for the third time in Justice League (2017), an ensemble film about the titular superheroes. Tim Grierson of Screen International wrote that despite providing "emotional resonance" to the film, Adams's talents had been wasted in a thankless supporting role. Adams returned to television in 2018 with Sharp Objects, an HBO miniseries based on Gillian Flynn's thriller novel of the same name. She served as an executive producer and starred as Camille Preaker, a self-harming reporter who returns to her hometown to cover the murder of two young girls. Adams gained weight for the part and, on days of filming, underwent three hours of prosthetic makeup to create her character's scarred body. She read A Bright Red Scream to learn about self-mutilation and researched the psychological condition of Munchausen syndrome by proxy. She found herself unable to distance herself from the dysfunctional role and experienced insomnia. The series and Adams's performance received critical acclaim; James Poniewozik of The New York Times praised the complex characterization of Preaker and called Adams's performance "transfixing". Daniel D'Addario of Variety found her to be "operating at the peak of her abilities" and added that with "her voice