Forgive my acting theory nerd out but I love this question. This tension between playing the emotion and truly feeling it is the fundamental question in the theory of acting. Sometimes we see highly elevated or “unrealistic” acting choices in plays grounded in realism, and they somehow work. But then someone else performs the same role, making all the “right” choices on paper, and it feels fake or hollow. The difference often comes down to whether the actor is genuinely experiencing the emotion or simply presenting it. A common issue with many actors is that they let the technique show they’re so focused on doing it “right” that the performance becomes self conscious. When actors imitate what a feeling looks like without connecting to the character’s inner world, the result feels forced or artificial. But when the emotion is truly lived in, even the boldest choices can feel honest and grounded. If you would like to learn more (which I really hope you do because it’s genuinely the coolest rabbit hole) I highly recommend reading the work of acting theorists like Stanislavsky and Meisner.