Selena Gomez shares emotional reaction to landing role in trans cartel film Emilia Pérez

Selena Gomez lit by neon red light in Emilia Perez

Selena Gomez has posted her reaction on social media to being cast in a new film about a transgender drug dealer, Emilia Perez.

A video on her Instagram shows Gomez climbing on to a bed, covering her face with her hands and saying: “I can’t believe I got the movie, I’m so gonna cry right now. This is going to be so cool.”

Further pictures include the former Disney star cuddling up with trans actress Karla Sofía Gascón at a costume fitting, and a selfie.

The film stars Marvel’s Zoe Saldaña as Rita Moro Castro, a disgruntled lawyer “tasked with assisting an escaped Mexican cartel leader in undergoing sex-reassignment surgery“, as well as Litvinenko‘s Mark Ivanir, and Edgar Ramírez, who starred in the remake of surfer/crime movie Point Break.

The official plot synopsis of the new film reads: “Emilia Perez follows the story of an overqualified and undervalued lawyer at a large firm that is more interested in getting criminals off the hook than bringing them to justice.

“One day, she is given an unexpected way out, when [a] cartel leader hires her to help [her] withdraw from [her] business and realise a plan [she] has been secretly preparing for years: to become the woman [she] has always dreamt of being.”

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The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where critics hailed it as a “masterpiece”. Right now, it boasts an 88 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Emilia Perez opens in France on Wednesday (21 August), and US cinemas in the autumn. UK viewers can watch it on Netflix from 13 November.

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