Karla Sofia Gascon, a fierce contender for Best Actress at this year’s Academy Awards, has found herself at the centre of a firestorm after a series of controversial social media posts resurfaced. The 52-year-old actress, who captivated audiences with her portrayal of a transgender crime boss in the polarizing Netflix musical Emilia Perez, has faced mounting backlash over offensive tweets she made in the past. Topics ranging from George Floyd to Islam and Oscar diversity have ignited fierce debate.
Amidst the controversy, director Jacques Audiard publicly distanced himself from Gascon, a move that sent shockwaves through her awards campaign. Now, Gascon has responded, addressing the fallout and the director’s criticism head-on.
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Gascon responds to Emilia Perez director
In an interview with Deadline, Audiard described the Oscar-nominated actor’s previous comments on social media as “inexcusable” and called her out for “playing the victim” adding that he did not contact her since the fallout and “didn’t want to.”
Responding to this, Gascon shared on Instagram that she would be taking a step back from the public eye during the rest of the award season. On Thursday, she wrote, “Following Jacques interview that I understand, I decided, for the film, for Jacques, for the cast, for the incredible crew who deserves it, for the beautiful adventure we all had together, to let the work talk for itself, hoping my silence will allow the film to be appreciated for what it is, a beautiful ode to love and difference,” as reported by The Independent.
She added, “I sincerely apologise to everyone who has been hurt along the way.”
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Emilia Perez director’s remarks about Gascon’s controversial tweets
A day before Gascon’s social media post, in an interview with the media outlet, he said, “I haven’t spoken to her, and I don’t want to. She is in a self-destructive approach that I can’t interfere in, and I really don’t understand why she’s continuing. Why is she harming herself? Why? I don’t understand it.”
He continued, “What I don’t understand about this too is why she’s harming people who were very close to her. I’m thinking in this thing of how hurting others, of how she’s hurting the crew and all these people who worked so incredibly hard on this film. I’m thinking of myself, I’m thinking of Zoe [Saldaña] and Selena [Gomez]. I just don’t understand why she’s continuing to harm us.”
Gascón has previously apologised multiple times for the controversial social media posts that sparked backlash and recently appeared in an emotional hour-long interview with CNN en Espanol. During the interview, she became visibly distressed as she responded to questions about her past actions, insisting to interviewer Juan Carlos Arciniegas that she was “not a racist.”