Karla Sofía Gascón is reflecting on the recent tumultuous season of her life.
The Spanish actress Emilia Pérez, aged 52, experienced a remarkable year in 2024. Her Netflix movie, directed by Jacques Audiard, was widely praised by critics. However, later in the year, she faced criticism due to offensive tweets from her past resurfacing.
Unearthed by journalist Sarah Hagi, the posts made by Karla in 2020 and 2021 spewed anti-Islam and racist rhetoric.
Due to the backlash that followed, Pérez, who is a transgender woman, decided not to attend key award ceremonies like the BAFTA, SAG, and Goya Awards during the peak of the awards season.
In a detailed statement given to The Hollywood Reporter, Pérez disclosed that she struggled with dark thoughts amidst the intense criticism she faced.
Acknowledging her faults, Karla said, ‘With no excuse, and without any intention to justify any of my past actions, I apologize to all I have offended at any point in my life and throughout my journey.
Karla Sofía Gascón is reflecting on the recent tumultuous season of her life, which saw her become the target of backlash after offensive tweets she made resurfaced; pictured March 2
The 52-year-old Spanish star of Emilia Pérez had a whirlwind 2024 – first with the critical success of her Jacques Audiard-directed Netflix film, and later with the fallout from her tweets
‘I humbly ask for their forgiveness and, to honor their kindness and understanding, I promise I will commit to continuing to learn and listen, so as not to make the same mistakes in the future.’
Elsewhere in the manifesto, the movie star admitted solemnly: ‘Amid this unexpected, devastating storm, there have been moments when the pain has been so overwhelming that I contemplated the unthinkable.’
She heartbreakingly shared, ‘I harbored darker thoughts than those I considered in some of my previous, no less intimate and personal struggles. And I asked myself: if I, with all my strength and preparedness to deal with rage and rejection, am on the edge, what would have become of someone with fewer emotional resources to resist this onslaught?’
Gascón completed the thought: ‘Somehow, I made it. Others would not have survived this brutal winter I am about to wrap up.’
The entertainer added that she’s hopeful that the worst of the turmoil has passed.
‘Now that the storm is calming down a bit, and the worst has passed (or so I hope), I start seeing clearly what I have learned.
‘I’ve learned that hatred, like fire, cannot be put down with more hatred. Offenses cannot be erased with more offenses, and mistakes cannot clean up other mistakes, especially when lies and falseness proliferate all around and when all they send back to me is pure rage, blatant bullying, vexation, scorn, and even death threats.’
In a lengthy statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter, Gascón has revealed she ‘contemplated the unthinkable’ at the height of the blowback; pictured February 28
Gascón received public support from Madonna in recent days, with the Queen of Pop using social media to voice her concern
Sharing a photo of her and Madonna in a warm embrace, Karla thanked the singer for showing her love and inviting her to her Oscars after party this week
Gascón received public support from Madonna in recent days, with the Queen of Pop using social media to voice her concern.
The Material Girl hitmaker wrote via Instagram Stories, ‘The Lynch mob mentality in this country is at an all-time high. The excitement people get from watching people go down or be silenced, be blacklisted is disturbing.’
The songstress also called out, ‘It breaks my heart to witness the pain of trans-people who are not accepted by a society that fears them because they are different.’
Sharing a photo of her and Madonna in a warm embrace, Karla thanked the singer for showing her love and inviting her to her Oscars after party this week.
‘Madonna, I want to thank you for all the love you have shown me, for your invitation to the party you gave after the Oscars and for your words of love and strength. I love you,’ she wrote online.
