Following backlash to old Islamophobic, anti-Asian, anti-Black, and anti–Selena Gomez (?) social-media posts, the embattled Emilia Pérez actress Karla Sofía Gascón cried as she told CNN En Español Sunday that she would not withdraw from Oscar contention.
“I cannot step down from an Oscar nomination because I have not committed any crime, nor have I harmed anyone,” Gascón, who is currently nominated for Best Actress, said. “I am neither racist nor anything that all these people have tried to make others believe I am.”
Gascón, who made history as the first openly transgender actress nominated for an acting Oscar, added that she didn’t “recognize” some of the tweets that were first reshared by the writer Sarah Hagi. She also denied writing a 2022 tweet about her Emilia Pérez co-star Selena Gomez, allegedly calling the singer a “rich rat.”
“It’s not mine, of course, I have never said anything about my colleague, I would never refer to her that way,” Gascón said. “I have been judged, condemned, sacrificed, crucified, and stoned without a trial and without the option to defend myself.”
In the posts ranging from 2020 and 2021, Gascón called George Floyd, in Spanish, a “scammer drug addict,” shared anti–Black Lives Matter sentiments, and criticized Muslim culture. Gascón has since deactivated her X account and continues to apologize for the tweets — while also denying she ever posted them.
“As a member of a marginalized community, I know this suffering all too well and deeply regret having caused pain,” she continued. “All my life, I have fought for a better world. I believe that light will always triumph over darkness.”