US singer and actress Selena Gomez joined her co-stars on the red carpet at the London Film Festival on Friday for the UK premiere of her Oscar-nominated film *Emilia Pérez*. The Spanish-language musical was among the breakout hits at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, where Gomez and three of her co-stars—Zoe Saldaña, Adriana Paz, and Karla Sofía Gascón—were collectively awarded best actress.
The film *Emilia Pérez* follows a Mexican cartel leader, portrayed by Gascón, who seeks the help of a high-powered lawyer named Rita (played by Saldaña) to fake his own death. However, the cartel leader’s motive for wanting to retire from the world of crime is unexpected: he wishes to change gender and live a new life as a woman. The narrative centers around four women, including the newly transitioned Emilia Pérez, as they each strive for their own version of happiness in contemporary Mexico.
Pérez is portrayed by Spanish trans actress Gascón, who is seen as a potential best actress contender in the upcoming awards season. Gomez takes on the role of the drug lord’s wife, who remains unaware of her former lover’s new identity, while Paz plays Emilia’s romantic interest post-transition. The four stars graced the red carpet ahead of the film’s UK premiere at the Royal Festival Hall as part of the London Film Festival on Friday.
French director Jacques Audiard conceived the film after reading a chapter in Boris Razon’s 2018 novel *Écoute*, which tells the story of a drug lord who changes identity. Audiard took the story further, making it about a gender transition. “I was less interested in a change of identity to evade competitor drug barons, and more interested in the change of identity for the sake of the person she was and is,” he explained to BBC News. “I was more interested in the past and what led to that transition.”
The role demanded someone very specific: a trans actress who spoke Spanish and could also sing and dance. Recalling the casting process, Gascón shared with BBC News: “I was contacted while I was in Mexico by a production team, and they told me, ‘We need an actress as crazy as you—you’re the only one who can do this role, but you need to learn five songs by tomorrow!’”
“I replied, ‘OK, let’s record the whole album, and we’ll go on tour as soon as you want!’” she joked. “But I did say, ‘This is going to be difficult; I’m not a singer.’ However, the team in the film worked with me incredibly well, helping me with all the songs to ensure we could produce the best work possible.”
Regarding Gascón’s casting, Audiard simply stated: “Without her, there would be no film.” Interestingly, the actress advocated for playing both the male and female roles—essentially, portraying the character before and after the transition. Audiard initially considered casting a different actor for the male drug lord, Manitas, because he felt “uncomfortable asking [Gascón] to revisit something she was moving away from.”
However, Gascón countered, saying: “I told Jacques I wanted to play this role in the complete arc because it’s important for me to perform the full part. It wouldn’t be the same film if another actor played [Manitas].” This meant utilizing effects and makeup, such as a fake beard, so she could portray the drug baron in the film’s first section.
“This film is what it is because the same actress performed the complete role,” Gascón emphasized. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I didn’t want to miss the chance to play this.”
Early reviews of *Emilia Pérez*, set to release on Netflix next month, have been generally positive. Entertainment Weekly’s Maureen Lee Lenker described it as “a wild, gritty, glitter-soaked ride that defies convention and classification.” She praised the performances, noting, “Selena Gomez is a welcome surprise, shedding any remaining hints of her Disney Channel origins in her portrayal of a hard-loving wife of a narco.”
“The film’s climax, in particular, allows Gomez to shine as a dramatic actress in new ways. She conveys heartache and anguish through a tortured physicality that propels her into the unpredictable state of a woman on the verge of something dangerous.” When asked by the BBC’s Graham Norton if returning to the world of singing and dancing for the musical was comfortable, Gomez replied: “No, because this was completely different. It involved intricate dance moves I never knew my body could do, and I was also playing a character, so if anything, I tried to avoid what I was comfortable with.”
There has been significant praise for Gascón, described as a “wonderful discovery” who delivers “a magnificent performance,” according to David Rooney of the *Hollywood Reporter*. The Telegraph’s Tim Robey characterized the film as “amazingly confident—it’s clever, earnest, ridiculous, knowing, forceful, and absolutely bonkers.” Meanwhile, Hoai-Tran Bui of *Inverse* called it “an emotionally fulfilling triumph.”
Not all critics, however, were as enthusiastic. Kyle Turner of *Slant* noted, “Emilia Pérez was originally intended to be an opera, which perhaps partly explains its saccharine sentimentality, repetitive lyrics, and diverging story branches. But that doesn’t excuse its almost random, whiplash-inducing tonal pivots.” Conversely, Lauren Bradshaw of *Fangirl Freakout* stated, “Emilia Pérez is a magnificent, genre-bending thrill ride that transcends the typical movie construct, breathing a fresh burst of excitement into the way we think about film.”
As an actress, Gomez is best known for her role in *Only Murders in the Building*, but she also boasts a successful singing career with hits like “Back To You,” “Wolves,” and “Love You Like a Love Song.” Her co-star Saldaña has starred in numerous blockbusters over the last two decades, including roles in the *Avatar* and *Guardians of the Galaxy* franchises.
It remains to be seen whether *Emilia Pérez* will be a significant player in the awards circuit, but Academy voters may see an opportunity to recognize Saldaña’s box office success through this critically acclaimed work. Their co-star Adriana Paz is a Mexican actress known for her roles in *Not Forgotten*, *Hilda*, and *La Caridad*.
But the film’s breakout star is arguably Gascón, who already had a successful acting career before transitioning in 2018.
Praising her performance in his review, Rooney said: “The warmth, the joyous self-realisation, the complexity and authenticity… that illuminate [Gascón’s] characterisation no doubt owe much to the parallels in the Spanish star’s life – in her own words, she was an actor before becoming an actress, a father before becoming a mother.”
Emilia Pérez has already been selected as France’s entry for the best international feature category at the Oscars, which take place in March.
