The case of "Emilia Pérez", the Oscar nominee who fell into disgrace
Director Jacques Audiard 's " Emilia Perez " is an Oscar contender like no other. It's a musical , a trans parable, and a melodrama set in Mexico , all combined into a unique amalgam by an international team of filmmakers.
And, equally oddly, it's a best picture nominee that, at times, it seems, no one likes.
On the one hand, " Emilia Perez " is one of the most acclaimed films of the year. It triumphed at the Golden Globes , the Goyas and the BAFTAs, as well as winning the BAFTA and SAG for best supporting actress for Zoe Saldana .
- Sunday comes with 13 Academy Award nominations. Only three films in Oscar history have earned more nominations.
On the other hand, " Emilia Perez " has been mocked for her over-the-top acting, criticized for her portrayal of Mexican culture, and has been embroiled in controversy since she rose to the most-nominated category.
How far “ Emilia Perez ” can go remains to be seen. If it can weather the backlash and emerge as the winner at the Oscars on Sunday, it would give Netflix its first win in the best picture category. Its star, Karla Sofia Gascon , is the first openly trans actress nominated, and her win would be equally historic.
However, those chances appear seriously threatened after old tweets from Gascón prompted her to issue an apology .
At the SAG Awards , Gascón was not there to present the film alongside her co-stars Selena Gomez and Saldaña , and for now her presence at the Academy Awards has been confirmed after days of uncertainty.
- But how did we get here in the first place? What has made “ Emilia Perez ” so acclaimed and reviled in equal measure?
When " Emilia Perez " debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in May of last year, the reception was mixed, but generally favorable.
Audiard , the French director of “De rouille et d´os” (“Metal and Bone”), “Un prophète” and Dheepan, has made transformation stories one of his specialties. But “ Emilia Perez ” is perhaps his boldest foray yet into shape-shifting narratives.
Gascón plays a Mexican drug lord who, with the help of a lawyer (Saldaña), undergoes gender-affirming surgery. He later emerges to reconnect with the children he had with his ex-wife (Gomez).
The narco- musical is unabashedly bold, a quality that the film's supporters enthusiastically embraced. The film's cast shared the best actress award at Cannes , and the film won the jury prize. Netflix acquired it for a reported $12 million.
She becomes a favorite for the OscarsAlthough " Emilia Perez " seemed to have promising awards opportunities for its actresses, it did not acquire the air of a heavyweight at the Oscars until late fall.
- By then, Netflix , which runs aggressive awards campaigns, had turned " Emilia Perez " into a juggernaut.
In its favor was that this year's awards season was widely considered to be a very open one. Also, the other musical in the Oscar race, " Wicked ," has songs from the Broadway adaptation, which leaves it on the sidelines in the best song category where original tunes are required. Both "El Mal" and "Mi Camino" by " Emilia Perez " are nominated for best song.
Also, as France 's nominated film for the Academy Awards, it was nominated for Best International Film .
As the film academy has expanded its membership in recent years, many more foreign voters have swung the Oscars toward international nominees . A French- and Spanish-language production featuring Hollywood stars is perfectly suited to an increasingly global Oscars .
The audiences spoke out![[object HTMLTextAreaElement]](https://resources.diariolibre.com/images/2025/02/26/emilia-perez-golden-globes-100-1920x1080-dabd640b.jpg)
As " Emilia Perez "'s awards opportunities expanded, audiences began to weigh in, too. If critics were divided, viewers have largely rejected it.
On Rotten Tomatoes , the film earned a 76% approval rating from critics, but only 19% from audiences. Netflix does not report box office figures, so " Emilia Perez " has no quantifiable ticket sales in the United States and Canada. The film has also not ranked highly on the streaming service.
As more people watched the film, some found fault with it. GLAAD passed over “ Emilia Perez ” in its annual awards. The LGBTQ rights alliance declared the film “a deeply retrograde depiction of a trans woman” and “a step backward for trans representation.”
Moviegoers in Mexico were also unimpressed, criticizing the film's mix of accents, its simplistic treatment of drug-related violence in the country and what some described as a general lack of authenticity .
- Mexican comedian and actor Eugenio Derbez called Selena Gomez 's accent "indefensible," but later apologized for his comments.
A group of Mexican filmmakers even responded with a parody short film titled “Johanne Sacreblu,” described as “a French- inspired film made entirely without a French cast or crew.”
The film had more than a million viewers in its opening weekend and has accumulated more than 3 million views on YouTube, while the screenings of " Emilia Pérez " in theaters had a low turnout .
Gascón 's social media posts
Journalist Sarah Hagi in late January exposed Gascón 's old posts on the social network X, formerly called Twitter, in which he disparaged Muslims, George Floyd and China. After an uproar, Gascón apologized in a statement provided by Netflix .
The posts, which date back to 2016 , included suggestions that Islam be banned and that Floyd , a Black man killed by a white Minneapolis police officer in 2020, was a “drug-addicted hustler” who “very few people cared about.”
"As someone from a marginalized community, I know this suffering all too well and I am deeply sorry to those I have caused pain ," Gascón said.
"All my life I have fought for a better world. I believe that light will always triumph over darkness." Gascón 's account on X was later deactivated .
What will happen this weekend?How much damage has been done to " Emilia Perez's " Oscar chances remains to be seen. Gascon is not considered a favorite over "The Substance"'s Demi Moore, but analysts believe the repercussions could be broader for a film that already had a lot of criticism against it.
Other films, however, have survived controversy on the road to Oscar glory. The divisive 2019 best picture winner , "Green Book , " had plenty of detractors but still managed to win.
- Either way, it should be a close race this year.
- An unusually large number of films, including the PGA award-winner " Anora " and the SAG winner "Conclave," have a legitimate chance, as do "The Brutalist ," " Wicked " and "A Complete Unknown."
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