Los Angeles – Netflix’s aspirations for an Academy Award for Best Picture appear to have collapsed after resurfaced social media posts sparked a firestorm of controversy.
The streaming giant’s genre-blending musical crime drama Emilia Perez initially seemed like a strong contender after securing the jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival and receiving 13 Oscar nominations. However, its momentum waned when past Spanish-language posts from lead actress Karla Sofia Gascon were translated and widely circulated. The posts, dating from 2016 to 2020, included inflammatory comments about Islam and derogatory remarks about George Floyd. Although Gascon issued an apology, the damage to the film’s awards campaign was irreversible.
“This year has been one where contenders essentially sabotage their own movies,” remarked veteran marketing executive Terry Press, who has worked on Oscar campaigns for acclaimed directors like Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard. Gascon has largely withdrawn from Hollywood’s awards circuit but confirmed she will attend Sunday’s ceremony.
Netflix has not responded to requests for comment.
This year’s Best Picture race has been fraught with controversy. Director Brady Corbet faced backlash for using artificial intelligence in The Brutalist to refine actors’ Hungarian dialogue, while Brazilian actress Fernanda Torres, nominated for I’m Still Here, apologized for appearing in blackface in an old television skit.
Michael Schulman, author of Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears, compared this season to a high-stakes political race. “Every frontrunner seems to have a skeleton in their closet,” he said, referencing past Oscar controversies, including Green Book director Peter Farrelly’s inappropriate behavior and Harvey Weinstein’s infamous whisper campaigns against competitors.
History has shown that scandal can derail Oscar hopefuls, as seen with The Birth of a Nation in 2016, when revelations about filmmaker Nate Parker’s past led to the film’s downfall. Whether Emilia Perez will suffer the same fate remains to be seen, but for now, Netflix’s dreams of Oscar glory are rapidly fading.