Netflix no longer helping Karla Sofía Gascon’s Oscar bid for ‘Emilia Pérez’
Netflix will no longer be supporting Karla Sofía Gascón in the race to win ‘Best Actress’ at this year’s Academy Awards.
The decision comes after a tumultuous week for the Emilia Pérez star, who faced backlash when problematic tweets from 2020 and 2021 resurfaced. In them, Gascón espoused racist and Islamophobic beliefs and mocked the Academy Awards for their diversity.
When the social media posts came to light and prompted an outcry, Gascón issued a series of statements and apologies, hitting back at her critics and saying that she was misunderstood. In an Instagram post from the weekend, she said she had changed since writing the tweets.
However, Netflix, the global distributor of Emilia Pérez, has added its voice to the controversy by saying that it will no longer be supporting the star in her bid for the ‘Best Actress’ Oscar. Without the backing of the streamer, Gascón is not expected to appear at a slate of key events in the final push to the March ceremony that many nominees will be attending, including the AFI Awards luncheon, the Critics Choice Awards, the Directors Guild of America Awards, and the Santa Barbara International Film Festival on Sunday.
The announcement comes after Gascón appeared on CNN over the weekend to further defend herself from the blowback. In the interview, she broke down in tears on multiple occasions and claimed that she was the victim of a smear campaign, echoing another Hollywood scandal that has gripped the industry in recent months over the legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni. Netflix quickly made it clear that it had nothing to do with the interview.
Gascón made history when she was nominated for ‘Best Actress,’ becoming the first openly trans actor to earn a nod from the Academy. She was thought by many industry insiders to be a frontrunner, but the past week has thrown her campaign into disarray. Jacques Audiard’s musical is still competing in 12 other categories, but it’s unclear whether the controversy will affect its odds in these races.