‘Emilia Pérez’ star Karla Sofía Gascón under fire for racist and Islamophobic tweets

Karla Sofía Gascón faces backlash for resurfaced tweets about Muslims, George Floyd, and Oscars diversity policies.

Karla Sofía Gascón, the star of Emilia Pérez and the first openly transgender actor nominated for an Academy Award, is facing criticism after resurfaced social media posts.

The tweets, shared on her X account (formerly Twitter) between 2020 and 2021, have sparked outrage for their comments on Muslims, George Floyd, and diversity at the Oscars.

emilia pérez’ lead actress, karla sofía gascón just deleted her racist tweet about george floyd but since i predicted she would delete it I screen recorded it. pic.twitter.com/DRdKn39dLI

— َ (@chlmtslut) January 30, 2025

One tweet from Nov. 22, 2020, questioned the growing Muslim population in Spain, implying concerns over cultural shifts. Another from Sept. 2, 2020, criticized Islamic dress codes for women, calling them "DEEPLY DISGUSTING OF HUMANITY." In a Jan. 29, 2021, post, she argued that Islam does not comply with human rights and suggested banning religions that fail to do so. She also criticized Christianity and Catholicism in an Aug. 16, 2021, tweet.

Regarding George Floyd, Gascón wrote in May 2020 that his death became a symbol for racial injustice, though she referred to him as a "drug addict swindler." She later suggested the issue was more about social class than race.

Gascón also expressed dissatisfaction with the 2021 Academy Awards, stating it resembled a "Black Lives Matter demonstration or Afro-Korean festival" rather than a traditional Oscars ceremony.

Following backlash, many of the tweets were deleted. Neither Netflix nor the Academy has commented, and Gascón's representatives have not responded to requests for a statement.