Oscar-nominated Emilia Pérez star Karla Sofía Gascón has issued an apology through Netflix for the caustic social media missives she posted half a decade ago, which have imperiled her awards-season chances.
“I want to acknowledge the conversation around my past social media posts that have caused hurt. As someone in a marginalized community,” she said, “I know this suffering all too well and I am deeply sorry to those I have caused pain. All my life I have fought for a better world. I believe light will always triumph over darkness.”
How quickly the fortunes of Oscar turn when old social media posts are not done away with. Earlier this week, it seemed like Gascón had a good shot at making history and becoming the first transgender actress to win the Best Actress Oscar, this after she gave a stirring speech when the film won the Golden Globe. She is the first transgender actress to get the Oscar nomination, and was the first openly Trans actress to be Globe nominated. The film is up for Best Picture and Best International Film.
Now, Netflix is scrambling to stop the damage caused by years-old highly insensitive and possibly racist social media posts on hot-button topics like the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers who are now behind bars, and equally caustic comments about Islam and its worshippers in Spain. You’ve already read the unearthed missives, most likely, posted at a time when Gascon was acting in local TV series. Reports said that she came out as transgender in 2016 and began her transition in 2018.
Old social media missives was nearly a career ender for James Gunn, who now co-runs DC for Warner Bros and is finishing a new Superman film. He got a second chance. The disappointing part of Gascón assailing a murder victim like Floyd — whose killing sparked nationwide protests in the U.S. — and the Muslim community is that she is an actress whose performance has positioned her to become a galvanizing presence in the transgender and LGBTQ+ community at a time when heroes are needed. Considering what the actress went through herself, her fans deserve her to show more compassion when describing the differences between people.
Hopefully, her apology is the first step toward continuing on that path.
