Emilia Pérez star Selena Gomez breaks silence on Karla Sofía Gascón controversy

Selena Gomez has briefly addressed the controversy surrounding Karla Sofía Gascón, the leading star of her Oscar-nominated film, Emilia Pérez.

During a Q&A at the Santa Barbara Film Festival on Sunday (9 February), Selena Gomez was asked how she is doing amid a firestorm that has seen the Oscars campaign for Emilia Pérez in tatters.

At the end of last month, a slew of old social media posts shared by lead Gascón were unearthed, many of which featured anti-Islam sentiment.

Other Gascón posts criticised the response to George Floyd’s death in 2020, with one referring to him as “a drug addict swindler”, while another took aim at the Oscars for celebrating diversity.

Days before the now-deleted posts were highlighted, Gascón became the first publicly transgender woman to ever be nominated in an acting category at the Oscars.

“I’m good. I’m really good,” Gomez shared when asked how she’s navigating the uproar.

“Some of the magic has disappeared, but I choose to continue to be proud of what I’ve done. I’m just grateful. I live with no regrets, and I would do this movie over and over again if I could.”

Selena Gomez says that “some of the magic” around her film “Emilia Pérez” “has disappeared,” in light of the recent controversies surrounding the film, but that she would make the film “over and over again,” if she could: “I live with no regrets.” pic.twitter.com/rtyEN9M8Qz

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) February 10, 2025

It’s a short reflection on the downfall of Emilia Pérez, which broke Oscars records as the most nominated non-English language film of all time, with 13 nods.

The director of the Spanish language crime musical thriller, Jacques Audiard, has been far more stern in his response to the controversy, stating last week that he has no plans to address Gascón’s tweets with her.

“I haven’t spoken to her, and I don’t want to,” he told Deadline.

“She is in a self-destructive approach that I can’t interfere in, and I really don’t understand why she’s continuing… I’m not getting in touch with her because right now she needs space to reflect and take accountability for her actions.”

Audiard’s comments came after Gascón, who has apologised for her remarks, defended herself during an hour long interview with CNN, in which she protested that she isn’t a “racist”.

Gascón has since promised “silence” on the controversy going forward, writing in an Instagram post: “I decided, for the film, for Jacques, 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.”

Despite the backlash, Emilia Pérez is continuing to fare well on the awards circuit, with Gomez’s co-star Zoë Saldaña recently winning the Best Movie Supporting Actress accolade at the Critics Choice Awards.

The musical film also won Best European film at Spain’s leading film awards, the Goya awards, over the weekend (8 February).

The Oscars take place on 2 March 2025.

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