Fuss over trans woman
Oscar favorite on the brink because of scandalous tweets
Within a very short space of time, the musical thriller "Emilia Pérez" has gone from being the biggest favorite to the bogeyman of this year's Oscars. Some of the blame lies with very old tweets by lead actress Karla Sofía Gascón, which have now been discovered and brought to light by a journalist in Canada - just four weeks before the awards ceremony. And they are brimming with racism, Islamophobia and vicious criticism of female colleagues in the industry.
The posts by the Spaniard, who was the first trans woman to be nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role, triggered a wave of outrage and horror. Just a few days before the affair broke out, the 52-year-old had complained about attacks, threats and insults online.
Tearful interview
In principle, Gascón did not deny the authenticity of most of the scandalous tweets attributed to her. She quickly closed her X account and also apologized.
In an interview with CNN on Sunday, Gascón even tearfully explained: "I can't withdraw my Oscar nomination because I didn't commit a crime or hurt anyone. I'm not a racist or any of the things that all these people have tried to convince others of." However, even with these tearful words, she will probably not be able to prevent the total loss.
Industry publications and experts agree: Gascón's posts, which were uncovered by journalist and podcaster Sarah Hagi, not only dashed her personal hopes of making film history as a trans woman. She also seriously jeopardized the chances of the French production, which is leading the 97th Academy Awards with 13 nominations.
Organizations such as the Muslim Public Affairs Council of Hollywood (MPAC) were shocked and called for consequences.
"Opportunities of the film buried"
Even in the Spanish homeland of the woman who, like Hollywood star Penélope Cruz, was born in Alcobendas near Madrid, Gascón is being judged harshly. She has "buried almost all her chances and also those of the film", commented the renowned newspaper "El País" on Sunday. "I am certain that the film will come away empty-handed", said the respected film expert Pau Brunet. The film's ratings plummeted in the betting shops.
This is not surprising: political correctness and sensitivity towards minorities play a particularly important role in Hollywood. There was no open, clear criticism from well-known colleagues for the time being. However, the 10,000 or so Academy members who will be voting for the winners in the 23 categories between February 11 and 18 will certainly have taken note of the latest incidents - and factored them into their choice.
One man's sorrow is another man's joy
The drama "The Brutalist" and the musical "Wicked" (in second place behind "Emilia Pérez" with ten nominations each) are likely to benefit most from Gascón's faux pas. But the Brazilian film "I'm Still Here", which like "Emilia Pérez" is in the running for "Best Film", "Best International Film" and "Best Actress in a Leading Role" (Fernanda Torres), now also suddenly has a much better chance.
Yet no film produced outside the USA had previously received as many Oscar nominations as "Emilia Pérez". Gascón plays a Mexican drug lord who has his gender reassigned to a woman. The unconventional and daring film by veteran director Jacques Audiard was named best European film of the year in Lucerne and also won the Golden Globe in the "Comedy/Musical" category.
Tweets like an all-round attack
The affair is now overshadowing all these successes. Were the tweets from Gascón - who briefly became a much-celebrated symbol in the fight against discrimination and equality - really that bad? Yes. Although some of them were made many years ago, they amounted to an all-round attack. Like a bull in a china store, as one Spanish commentator put it, the Spaniard attacked almost everything and everyone online.
According to reports from media such as "El País", Gascón insulted Arabs and Catalans, Islam and the Catholic Church, celebrities such as Miley Cyrus, Adele and even her "Emilia Pérez" co-star Selena Gómez, among others. The woman did not even stop at a victim of police violence in the USA such as George Floyd, whom she described as a "junkie".
Half-hearted apology?
"I am a person who has made, makes and will make mistakes, but I will learn from them," she said in one of her statements. However, her apology did not have the desired effect, partly because her justification that the tweets were ironic and partly taken out of context came across as half-hearted to many. She also spoke of a "campaign of hate" aimed at her as a trans woman and at her work.
In her first interview after the scandal broke out, she also told "CNN en Espanol": "The first thing I want to do, without a doubt, is apologize to all the people who may have felt offended by the way I expressed myself (...) I have been accused of being racist, and I am not." She uses "a lot of irony, sarcasm, sometimes exaggeration", she also said about a trivialization of Adolf Hitler. Some tweets had also been "invented by some media". She emphasized that she did not want to give up her Oscar nomination.
Harsh criticism also directed at Netflix and the agency
Meanwhile, it was not only Gascón, who had to make do with smaller roles in mostly less successful Spanish and Mexican films and TV productions before her international breakthrough with "Emilia Pérez" and was by no means considered a star, who came in for criticism. The streaming service Netflix as the main film distributor and the United Talent Agency (UTA) as the actress's representative are also being held accountable. "So much clumsiness is astonishing. The big question is: Why didn't anyone check the old tweets of the new world star?", writes "El País".
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