WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Emila Pérez.
Netflix’s crime comedy musicalEmilia Pérezhas sparked some controversy surrounding its alleged misrepresentation and flawed character construction of its titular trans protagonist, played by Karla Sofía Gascón. The combined talents of Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, and Selena Gomez led thecast ofEmilia Pérez, which won the Jury Prize and theBest Actress Ensemble award at the 2024 Cannes Film Festivalafter its world premiere in May. Directed by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard (Rust and Bone,The Sisters Brothers), the genre-blending film delivers innovative music numbers and choreography infused with a gut-wrenching story about unfulfilled desire and regret.
The film is a loose adaptation of the 2018 novelÉcouteby Boris Razon and is France’s official entry for Best International Feature at the upcoming 97th Academy Awards, which will be held on July 19, 2025.Emilia Pérez’ssoundtrackis the essential highlight of the film as well as the heart and soul of the inspirational yet tragic narrative. AlthoughEmilia Péreztakes place in several locations, the film was shot mostly in studios in Paris, France. The story follows Saldaña’s Rita, a defense lawyer in Mexico City looking to make a difference, who encounters an unusual but lucrative opportunity fromcartel kingpin Manitas Del Monte as he aims to fulfill his lifetime dream of transitioning to a woman.
Emilia Pérez Has Been Criticized For Its Problematic Trans Character Arc
Emilia’s extreme shift from evil to good reinforces gender binaries
Emilia Pérezis innately dealing with the hot-button topics of trans representation and equality in modern society, which naturally runs the risk of sparking controversy and/or backlash. While the movie has garnered a great deal of festival acclaim, it is simultaneously facing criticism for the alleged mishandling of its trans main character played by Gascón, a trans actress.The baseline criticism is thatEmilia Pérezcan be seen as being quite limited and superficialin its depiction of Emilia as a trans woman. A more critical perspective would argue that her portrayal is problematic, especially considering that Emilia becomes a completely different person after her gender-reassignment surgery.
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Emilia essentially has a villain-to-herotransformation from the evil and heartless Manitas into a virtuous and saintlike community figure. While the narrative circumstances prevent her from expressing any glimpse of Manitas after he faked his death to protect his family name, Emilia’s “masculine evil” side still comes out later on in the film when she attacks Jessi. Her voice deepens and reverts, breaking a crucial boundary previously held between Manitas and Emilia for years. It does provide one of the most shocking moments in the film that propels that third-act conflict but does so at the expense of delegitimizing its protagonist.
Emilia Pérez Uses Trans Tropes & Feels Uninformed About Trans Realities
Some believe the film negatively misrepresents the trans community
Some viewers and critics have taken issue with the uninformed and exaggerated information about trans realities inEmilia Pérez. Nat Jones ofVulturewrites, “I’ll briefly note the haters are correct that the movie doesn’t have much to say about the lived experience of trans people. Emilia Pérez is not really about the trans experience, in part because Emilia Pérez is not “about” anything other than Emilia Pérez.” Not only isEmilia Pérezaccused of avoiding these actualities, but the film also misrepresents certain aspectsof reality as well, which does more to set back trans representation in film than push it forward.
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Harron Walker ofThe Cutwrites, “I expect that a filmmaker so taken by the concept of transitioning, one who’s displayed a certain level of conscious sensitivity in his previous efforts to depict lives unlike his own, to at least display an informed understanding of what that concept actually looks like in practice.”
Others argue thatEmilia Pérezemploys some qualities of the trans experience for the benefit of its story while leaving out other aspectsthat would do more to capture a more authentic portrayal. Drew Burnett Gregory ofAutostraddlenotes the film’s inclusion of various trans tropes, such as “deadnaming, trans woman killer, tragic trans woman, transition treated as a death, trans woman abandons her wife and children to transition, and trans woman described as half male/half female.”
Emilia Pérez Releases In A Year With Powerful Trans Stories In Movies
I Saw The TV Glow offers a more profound vision of the trans experience
2024 saw the release of several other impactful and celebrated films centered on trans narratives, includingI Saw The TV GlowandThe People’s Joker. While the latter likely won’t get the same awards season attention as the former, both films are more nuanced, progressive works of trans art told from trans perspectives and filmmakers. This isnot to say that a cis person such as Audiard can’t make films on trans topics and characters,but the criticism aboutEmilia Pérez’sshallowness and lack of understanding on these matters is crucial to consider. Critics argue thatI Saw The TV Glowoffers a much more intentional and beneficial vision of the trans experience thanEmilia Pérezdoes.
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There are some progressive takeaways fromEmilia Pérez, however. Emilia’s impact on her community can be seen as symbolic of the impact she is quietly making as a trans woman. As Rita explains to Dr. Wasserman in the song “Lady”, “changing the soul changes society,” which is effectively what Emilia did for the issue of missing persons. However,Emilia does not advocate for her most immediate cause, trans equality, and instead remains silent about her transition and true identity to conceal herself as the criminal Manitas. To overtly advocate for trans rights and equality would risk blowing her cover, so finding another cause to become the face of was her way of silently honoring her most immediate community.
Emilia Pérez Could Still Break Down Some Barriers
Gascón is currently projected to receive a Best Actress nomination
Not to excuse the aforementioned issues withEmilia Pérez, the film still has the potential to be a significant landmark for trans representation in film.Gascón could very well become the first trans actress to receive an Oscar nomination. She is currently listed inVariety’stop 5 Best Actress contenders alongside Mikey Madison forAnora, Angelina Jolie forMaria, Cynthia Erivo forWicked, and Tilda Swinton forThe Room Next Door. While it wouldn’t erase the flaws of the character or film, it would undoubtedly mark a cinematic milestone.
Despite its aforementioned pitfalls,Emilia Pérezstill has a lot to offer as a robust and daring thriller-musical hybrid that calls for progress on a number of important social issues, particularly those found in the Latino community. While imperfect in its representation of the trans community and its harmful reinforcement of trans narrative tropes,Emilia Pérezcould still become a monumental movie by making a splash at the 2025 Academy Awards, where Gascón could make history.
Sources: Vulture, The Cut, Autostraddle, Variety
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Emilia Perez
Cast
Emilia Perez is a drama film that follows the life of Emilia Perez, a determined and ambitious individual striving to make a name for herself in a competitive environment. The story explores her journey as she navigates the challenges and obstacles that come her way, all while uncovering the complexities of her own identity.
