Karla Sofía Gascón is apologizing for her racist tweets. Again. Following a whirlwind week of interviews, half-apologies, and her fellow crew members condemning her, the Academy Award–nominated actress has finally pledged to keep quiet. I imagine the rest of the Emilia Pérez cast is letting out a collective sigh of relief.
In an interview with Deadline, director Jacques Audiard denounced Gascón’s past statements, saying he hasn’t spoken to her and doesn’t want to. “The exceptional atmosphere that we had on the set was indeed based on trust. And when you have that kind of relationship and suddenly you read something that that person has said, things that are absolutely hateful and worthy of being hated, of course that relationship is affected,” he said. “It’s as if you fall into a hole.”
“She’s really playing the victim,” Audiard continued. “She’s talking about herself as a victim, which is surprising. It’s as if she thought that words don’t hurt.”
Her co-star Zoe Saldaña — who is also nominated for an Academy Award — spoke out against Gascón’s bigoted posts in a recent interview with Variety. “I’m sad,” Saldaña said. “I’m also disappointed. I can’t speak for other people’s actions. All I can attest to is my experience, and never in a million years did I ever believe that we would be here.”
For the past week, Gascón has pulled out of several awards-season events, given a statement to Variety expressing her sorrow, and appeared tearful on CNN En Español, asserting her innocence. And now, following Saldaña and Audiard’s statements, she’s pledging her silence.
“Following Jacques’s interview that I understand, 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,” she wrote. “I sincerely apologize to everyone who has been hurt along the way.”
Seems safe to say Gascón can kiss her chances of becoming an Oscar winner good-bye. C’est la vie.