Oscars Outrage: Movie Fans Slate 13 Nominations For Emilia Pérez — Branding Trans Drama 'Worst Film of the Year' and Voting Panel 'A Woke Joke'
Movie fans aren't too thrilled with Emilia Pérez getting 13 nominations for the 2025 Academy Awards.
Jan. 23 2025, Published 11:53 a.m. ET
The 2025 Oscar nominations are in – and movie lovers are livid over Emilia Pérez dominating the race.
Film fans were already furious after the controversial trans movie scooped up four Golden Globes earlier this year, and the anger has only intensified following Thursday's bombshell Academy Award nominations, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The Spanish-language musical crime film snagged four Golden Globe awards earlier this year.
Emilia Pérez, a Spanish-language musical crime film starring Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldana, Selena Gomez, and Édgar Ramírez, is on the heels of its Best Film (Comedy or Musical) win just weeks ago.
It also snagged awards for Best Motion Picture (Non-English Language), Best Supporting Actress (Saldaña), and Best Song.
Fans were outraged the Netflix film beat out fellow Globes contenders such as Wicked and Anora.
However, outrage quickly sparked with it beating out top Globes contenders like Wicked, The Substance, and Anora – which many felt was undeserved.
Clips from the movie's musical scenes started circulating on social media, sparking even those who hadn't seen it to question how it could have triumphed over its fellow nominees.
Now a major Academy Award contender, Emilia Pérez made history on Thursday by setting a new record for the most Oscar nominations ever received by a non-English language film.
With 13 nominations under its belt, the Jacques Audiard-directed Netflix hit is facing even more fierce backlash – putting some major heat on The Academy.
The international film made history on Thursday by setting a new record for the most Oscar nominations ever received by a non-English language film.
One person tweeted: "This is why most of the time I think The Academy is a f------ joke. Why would you give 13 nominations to the WORST movie of the year?
"The disrespect for a community and a whole-a-- country and ya’ll think it’s a f------ musical/joke. F--- this s--- @TheAcademy #Oscars."
A second slammed: "Emilia Pérez is officially one of the worst films to ever be nominated for an Academy Award."
A third wrote: "I can’t even wrap my head around Emilia Pérez getting THIRTEEN (13!!!) #Oscars nominations. Quite possibly the worst movie ever (mid-scores from audiences & critics) to get double-digit nominations. Baffling."
A fourth bashed: "'Emilia Pérez', a dog--- excuse of a movie that appropriates and trivialises important aspects of Mexican society and social problematics while making a joke of gender identity, is the most-nominated film at the 2025 Oscars, with 13 nods."
Another said: "I watched the first ~20 minutes of Emilia Perez. Had to shut it off during the 'joyful' trans surgery musical scene. Depraved and unentertaining but probably will win Oscars because Hollywood = Trans + Orange Man Bad."
Someone else raged: "Emilia Perez having so much as a single nomination really just goes to show that the #Oscars are not watching movies and are just collecting paychecks. So many nasty snubs and huge oversights."
Emilia Pérez follows Juan "Manitas" Del Monte (Gascón), a Mexican cartel leader who undergoes gender-affirming surgery to escape her criminal past.
The film explores identity, redemption, and transition, set in Mexican culture, and has received praise for its avant-garde style and representation.
However, it has been criticized by queer critics and LGBTQ groups like GLAAD for its portrayal of trans identity and reliance on Mexican cultural stereotypes.
Mexican film enthusiasts slammed the musical for being "full stereotypes," while GLAAD deemed it a "step back" for transgender representation.
Some viewers have raised concerns about why the film was directed by Audiard, a French filmmaker who doesn't speak Spanish, a fact he confirmed to the New York Times.
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Audiard also came under fire for admitting that he did little research on Mexico while making the film.
Although Emilia Pérez is set in Mexico, many have pointed out its lead actors are not Mexican: Gascón is Spanish, Saldaña is of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent, and Gomez is of Mexican and Italian heritage.
The movie has been criticized by queer critics and LGBTQ groups like GLAAD for its portrayal of trans identity and reliance on Mexican cultural stereotypes.
The only Mexican cast member is Adriana Paz, who plays Emilia's lover, Epifanía.
The absence of Mexican actors in the film sparked backlash on social media, with one X user saying the film was "a European movie with Hollywood stars that pretend to be Mexican, with harmful stereotypes."
The 2025 Academy Awards will take place on Monday, March 2, at 7 p.m. EST.
