Emilia Perez director gives Karla Sofia Gascon Baftas shoutout after controversial absence

Karla Sofía Gascón may be absent from this year’s Baftas, but she was still given a fond mention by Emilia Pérez’s director.

The Netflix musical/thriller was nominated for 11 awards at the prestigious 2025 ceremony, with the likes of Wicked, Dune: Part Two, The Brutalist, Anora, and A Complete Unknown also up for top prizes.

However, the success of the film has been marred by controversy.

Gascón, 52, made history as the first out trans person to be nominated for an Academy Award in the best actress category this year, but a shadow was quickly cast over the moment when her former comments were exposed.

She has since faced intense scrutiny, with the most recent remark dating back to 2022. On X, she targeted Muslims, the death of George Floyd, Oscar diversity, and even her co-star, Selena Gomez.

As a result, she skipped the Baftas ceremony, while other members of the cast, plus director Jacques Audiard, put in appearances instead.

Accepting Emilia Pérez’s first gong of the night, the French filmmaker took to the stage to collect best film not in the English language.

Accepting the prize, he said he was ‘touched’, adding that the award ‘was for everyone who worked tirelessly on this film’.

He also paid tribute to his fellow nominees from Ireland’s Kneecap and Brazil’s I’m Not There.

Audiard added that ‘he would like to thank the wonderful talents’, and also named his ‘dear Zoe (Saldana) and Selena’.

He went on to name Spanish actress Gascon, whom he also called ‘dear’.

Earlier in the ceremony, US actresses Gomez and Saldana presented the outstanding debut by a British writer, director, and producer to Kneecap director Rich Peppiatt.

The presentation didn’t go without a hitch, though, as Gomez appeared to stumble, pausing for a moment, before announcing the winner.

Taking to the mic, Peppiatt recalled ‘it’s funny how life works’ as he accepted the award, recalling how he met his wife and then moved to Belfast, which was where he met Northern Irish rap trio Kneecap.

He added that Kneecap was a ‘movement’, and ‘everyone should have their language respected, their culture respected’, following his making of the Irish language movie.

This isn’t the only controversy surrounding Emilia Perez following its release.

It has also faced criticism from those in the Mexican film industry for focusing on the country’s drug problems and for its few cast members from the country.

In an interview with US outlet Deadline, Audiard said he was ‘shocked’ by criticism and claimed the movie’s critics either ‘haven’t seen the film properly or they haven’t seen it at all and are acting in bad faith’.

As for Gascon, she has apologised since her tweets were brought to light, maintaining that she had not been ‘racist’ in the posts.

Audiard told Deadline the remarks were ‘absolutely hateful’ and admitted they made it ‘very hard’ for him to think back to his ‘exceptional’ time working with her.

After his interview, Gascon announced she would ‘let the work talk for itself’, and said she was ‘hoping [her] silence will allow the film to be appreciated for what it is’.

Gascon has not attended recent awards ceremonies the film has featured in, with the latest being Spain’s Goya Awards.

The movie has also faced criticism from the transgender community, with US LGBTQ+ organisation Glaad issuing a statement on its website saying the film featured ‘a profoundly retrograde portrayal of a trans woman’ and was ‘a step backwards for trans representation’.

Emilia Perez sees Gascon’s character transition from man to woman in order to aid her disappearance after she had experienced gender dysphoria during her childhood.

The 2025 Bafta Film Awards will be broadcast at 7pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK.