Not one single person involved with Emilia Pérez talked about trans people in their Oscars speeches
French composer Clement Ducol, French composer Camille and French director Jacques Audiard accept the award for Best Original Song for ‘El Mal’ from ‘Emilia Perez’. ( Patrick T. Fallon / AFP/ Getty Images)
Not a single person connected with Oscar-winning transgender cartel musical Emilia Pérez talked about trans people in their speeches at the glitzy ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday (2 March).
The musical crime drama has proven controversial for numerous reasons, not least because of the unearthing of old social media posts by Karla Sofía Gascón, who plays Emilia, which included anti-Islamic and anti-diversity sentiments.
Gascón has since promised “silence” on the controversy going forward, writing in an Instagram post: “I decided, for the film, for Jacques (Audiard – director), 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.”
It has also been criticised for failing to include any Mexican cast or crew despite being set there.
Despite the film focusing on the story of a transgender woman, there was no mention of trans people on stage on Sunday evening. Zoe Saldaña broke down in tears as she accepted the statuette for best supporting actress but only talked about being a child of immigrants in her speech.
Songwriters Clément Ducol and Camille, who won the Academy Award for best original song, for El Mal, also failed to mention the trans community, as did director Jacques Audiard.
When asked about the community in the press room at the Dolby Theatre, where the ceremony was held, French director Audiard claimed: “Since I didn’t win best film or best director, I didn’t have the opportunity to speak. But had I had that opportunity, I would have spoken up.”
Avatar and Star Trek actress Saldaña plays Rita, a dogged lawyer who is recruited to help former Mexican cartel boss Emilia fake her own death, in the Spanish-language film.
Emilia wants to leave behind her old life and family – including wife Jessi (Selena Gomez) – behind, to access gender-affirming surgery.
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