Emma Stone Named Second Best Actor of 21st Century, Sparks Online Debate

Emma Stone's one of the best actors of her generation ... though some people online think The Independent may have rated her way too high.

Here's the deal ... the UK-based outlet dropped a list of the 60 greatest actors -- and, they put the two-time Academy Award winner in second place.

Of course, this means Emma beat out a lot of people's favorite actors and actresses -- including Daniel Day-Lewis (#3), Denzel Washington (#4) and Nicole Kidman (#5).

Obviously, one star just eeked out the top spot over Emma -- the late great Philip Seymour Hoffman who died of a drug overdose in 2014.

As you can imagine ... some people online didn't react well to Emma taking the top spot over some of the other A-Listers on her -- posting memes claiming she didn't deserve her ranking. Denzel's fans are especially pissed BTW ... and, they're coming after the Independent on X.

Of course, a whole lot of people say Emma doesn't really have to care about anyone's opinion on her acting ... 'cause she's got the hardware -- including two Academy Awards -- to prove she doesn't need anyone's approval.

Anyhoo ... it's a bit of a firestorm online -- and, there's only one way to solve debates like this. Vote below!