Emilia Pérez had its world premiere on 18 May 2024 at the77th Cannes Film Festival, where it won theJury Prize and theBest Actress award for its female ensemble. It was theatrically released by Pathé in France on 21 August 2024. The film received generally positive reviews from critics in the United States and Europe, who praised the direction, music, performances and themes, but received low audience scores on aggregators such asRotten Tomatoes.[7][8] In Mexico, the film was panned by both audiences and critics, who criticized its cultural misrepresentation, songwriting, use of stereotypes, and Spanish dialogue.[9] SomeLGBTQ commentators were also critical of its depiction of trans people.[10][11]
Rita Mora Castro, a struggling attorney inMexico City, leads the defense in a murder case involving a prominent media figure's wife. Against her own conscience, Rita proceeds to argue that the woman died by suicide ("El alegato"). After winning the case, Rita receives an anonymous call with a mysterious but lucrative offer. Reflecting on her discontent, she agrees to a meeting ("Todo y nada"). Her client, revealed to be cartel kingpin Juan "Manitas" Del Monte, expresses the desire to covertly undergogender-affirming surgery and begin a new and authentic life ("El encuentro") as a woman.
After consulting with doctors inBangkok ("La vaginoplastia") andTel Aviv ("Lady"), Rita finds a surgeon who agrees to perform the procedure after hearing Manitas's recollections ofgender dysphoria during childhood ("Deseo"). Following the procedure, Manitas's wife, Jessi, and their children are relocated to Switzerland. Jessi pleads to go to the United States to be with her sister instead, but she is told that Switzerland was chosen for their safety. Rita is paid an exorbitant sum for her services. Meanwhile, Manitas fakes their death and begins a new life as Emilia Pérez.
Four years later in London, Rita encounters Emilia, who wants to reunite with her children ("Por casualidad"). Rita arranges for Jessi and the children to return to Mexico City to live with Emilia, introducing her as a distant, wealthy cousin of Manitas who has volunteered to help raise the children. Jessi does not recognize Emilia and opposes the arrangement, ultimately agreeing to return to Mexico only to reunite with Gustavo Brun, a past lover with whom she had an affair during the later years of her marriage ("Bienvenida").
Adjusting to their new life in Mexico, Rita and Emilia have a chance encounter with themother of a missing child. Emilia reflects on her criminal past ("Mis siete hermanos y yo"). Later, as she is putting her son to bed, he says he still recognizes her scent ("Papá"). Remorseful, Emilia uses her connections with incarcerated cartel members to create a nonprofit that identifies the bodies of cartel victims ("Para") in order to return them to their families. Rita and Emilia collaborate in building the nonprofit and recruiting donors, some of whom, Rita notes, are dangerous and corrupt ("El Mal"). Epifanía, a woman whose abusive husband's remains were identified by the nonprofit, meets with Emilia to confirm his death. The two subsequently begin a relationship ("El amor").
Meanwhile, Jessi continues rekindling her relationship with Gustavo ("Mi camino"). She tells Emilia that the two plan to marry and move the family to a new home. When Emilia refers to the children as "mine" and becomes physically aggressive, Jessi flees with the children. After Emilia cuts off Jessi's allowance and threatens Gustavo into leaving Mexico, Jessi and Gustavo kidnap Emilia and demand ransom from Rita. She receives a package with a few of Emilia's severed fingers. Arriving at the designated location, Rita attempts to negotiate with Gustavo, but a shootout ensues with the security team Rita has hired to rescue Emilia.
Emilia finally reveals her true identity to Jessi, recounting intimate details of their first meeting and their wedding day ("Perdóname"). Gustavo and a confused Jessi load Emilia into the trunk of Gustavo's car and drive off. As Jessi slowly realizes what has happened, she becomes guilt-ridden and orders Gustavo to pull over, holding him at gunpoint. As the two struggle for the gun, the car veers off the road, killing Gustavo, Jessi, and Emilia.
Rita, devastated over Emilia's death, tells Jessi's children what has happened and offers to be their guardian. Epifanía marches in the street singing Emilia's eulogy and celebrating her fight for truth and freedom ("Las damas que pasan").
In January 2022,Télérama published a series of five-episode articles covering in detailJacques Audiard'spre-production process.[14] Audiard developed the screenplay from what was originally intended to be anopera libretto in four acts.[15] The title character was inspired by a chapter from Boris Razon's 2018 novelÉcoute.[16][17]Emilia Pérez marks the first time Audiard has written a film alone. Previous co-writerThomas Bidegain serves as a creative collaborator.[18]
Clément Ducol and French singerCamille composed the film's original songs followed by the original score.[19] Camille wrote the lyrics to the songs in Spanish with the assistance of Mexican translator Karla Aviles,[20] and performed on thedemo.[21]Damien Jalet choreographed the musical sequences.[15]Anthony Vaccarello, of fashion houseYves Saint Laurent, created the costumes.[22]
Production was initially to begin in autumn 2022 but was delayed six months due to varying scheduling conflicts with the cast members.[23][24] It was originally set to take place on location in Mexico but was moved to the Studios de Bry-Sur-Marne nearParis instead,[25] in accordance with Audiard's wishes.[23] The interior scenes included a reconstruction of an "authentic Mexican backdrop".[18] Audiard stated that the studio setting would afford him the ability to "produce more form" and give him "more freedom for the parts that are sung and choreographed".[15]
The soundtrack album features the film's original songs performed by cast membersZoe Saldaña, Gascón,Selena Gomez,Mark Ivanir,Adriana Paz and others, as well as the original score composed by Ducol and Camille. The soundtrack was first released digitally on 31 October 2024 bySony Masterworks.[31] Anextended play (EP) featuring a selection of five songs from the soundtrack–"El alegato", "Para", "Papá", "El Mal" and "Las damas que pasan"–was released earlier on 5 September 2024.[32]
Shortly after its premiere,Netflix beat out multiple studios and was in negotiations to acquire distribution rights to the film for North America and the United Kingdom for $12 million; the deal ultimately closed at $8 million instead.[36][37][38] The film was theatrically released in France on 21 August 2024 by Pathé.[39] World sales for international distribution were handled by The Veterans.[23]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 70% of 287 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "Karla Sofía Gascón isEmilia Pérez in a swaggering musical crime thriller of genre-bending fascination that is also an unapologetically trans story."[49]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 70 out of 100, based on 55 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[50] OnAlloCiné, the film received an average rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 38 reviews from French critics.[51]
Kevin Maher fromThe Times rated the film 5 out of 5 stars, stating "this mad musical is one of the year's best films."[52]Stephanie Zacharek ofTime considered that a film such asEmilia Pérez feels "fierce and glorious, a radical act of the imagination with kindness in its heart".[53]Manohla Dargis ofThe New York Times determined that "it's Gascón's performance that centers and grounds the story".[54]Richard Brody ofThe New Yorker lamented that the film "presents twists and turns that exhaust themselves in the strain to stoke excitement; the movie is a wild ride to nowhere".[55]Peter Bradshaw ofThe Guardian rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, billing it as a "slightly bizarre yet watchable musical", also writing that Gascón "carries it off with queenly flair".[56]
Leonard Maltin called the film "unique and amazing", writing: "Phrases like 'game-changer' and 'cutting-edge' can't capture just how audacious and originalEmilia Pérez is. [It's] a knock-out."[57]Peter Travers described the film as an "unmissable movie event", writing: "You've never seen anything like Jacques Audiard'sSpanish musical about violent passions starring Zoë Saldaña, Selena Gomez andtrans actress Karla Sofia Gascón in career-defining performances that take a piece out of you. This you don't want to miss."[58]
British film magazineSight and Sound included the film in its 50 Best Films of 2024 list.[59] American directorJohn Waters placed the film in his Top 10 list of the best films of 2024.[60] The film is included inTime's Top 10 list of the best films of 2024.[61] It ranks No. 8 inFotogramas' list of Top 10 Films of 2024.[62]Deadline Hollywood film critics Damon Wise and Stephanie Bunbury have the film in each of their Top 10 lists.[63] It ranks at No. 46 and No. 47 inThe Guardian's US and UK lists respectively.[64][65]
Contrasting to the positive industry reaction, the reception found within Mexico's cultural sector was divided.[75] Mexican filmmakerGuillermo del Toro remarked, "It's so beautiful to see a movie that is cinema".[76] Furthermore, Mexican director and writerIssa López praised the film, calling it a "masterpiece".[77] Conversely, Mexican cinematographerRodrigo Prieto described the experience of watching the film as offensive and "completely inauthentic".[78][79] In spite of being cast in the role of a non-native speaker, Gomez's Spanish diction generated abundant memes.[79] She was described as "indefensible" for it byEugenio Derbez, who later retracted his words after a greatly polarised online response, saying his comments were "indefensible and go against everything I stand for".[80]Vogue writer Atenea Morales de la Cruz explains the reaction over Gomez's performance results in part because the film targets mainly an audience outside of Mexico.[81]
Critics and advocacy organisations in and from theLGBTQ community have been much more critical. Speaking forNPR'sPop Culture Happy Hour, critic Reanna Cruz said that "it seemed like the filmmaker was paintingtrans women as liars", whileGLAAD called it "a profoundly retrograde portrayal of a trans woman" and "a step backward for trans representation".[82][11] Drew Burnett Gregory, writing forAutostraddle, asked, "How many times docis people have to learn about us before a portrayal like this one rings as false to them as it does to me?"[83] Editors of the American LGBT magazineThem claimed the film perpetuates an idea of "transness so completely from the cis imagination".[84] Lisa Laman ofCulturess, meanwhile, lamented howEmilia Pérez was yet another trans-centric film that focused excessively onsurgeries and only featured one trans character in its entire cast.[85]
Emilia Pérez has been harshly criticized in Mexico and Latin America. The film was the opening night film at theMorelia Film Festival in October 2024,[45] and was released in Mexican theaters on 23 January 2025, grossing 9.4 million pesos in its first weekend.[87][88] Carlos Aguilar ofRogerEbert.com described the overall casting as "another patch in this glamorous pastiche".[89] Prior to its national premiere, Audiard and actressAdriana Paz were to present the film at a special event at the Cineteca Nacional, with the presence of students from theUniversidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM) Azcapotzalco, but both cancelled their participation for "logistical reasons".[90]
The absence of Mexican actors in the main roles has been a source of controversy.[91][9][92] In this sense, some people understood that the casting director, Carla Hool, suggested in some statements that there was a lack of talent in Mexico as a reason for the main actresses in the film not to be Mexican, but Hool commented as follows: "We did a big search, we were open, and we did a big search in Mexico, and in the US, Spain, in all Latin America [...], but at the end of the day, the best actors who embody these characters are the ones who are right here, right?", defending the performance of the selected actors. On the other hand, actress Adriana Paz, who plays a secondary character, is Mexican.[93][94] Mexican screenwriter Hector Guillen said it was "really painful" that Hool, who is Mexican, has not found worthy talent in Mexico and Latin America. "The fact that there are a few Mexicans doesn't stop it from being aEurocentric production," he said.[95]
The lyrics of the song "Papá" performed by Emilia Pérez's son, alluding to the son'solfactory memories ("You smell like my dad, likeDiet Coke with ice, lemon and sweat.Mezcal andguacamole") were decried as "simplistic" and "ridiculous" on social media.[96] A parody short film,Johanne Sacreblu, set in France and featuringstereotypicalFrench accents but starring Mexicans and filmed in Mexico, was released by Camila Aurora González, a trans Mexican content creator.[97][98][99] The film went viral on social networks, to the extent thatVanity Fair France described it as "revenge" by Mexicans against the film, mentioning that the short film uses all kinds ofclichés about the country, such assailor shirts, mustaches,baguettes, the bad smell of French people and the presence of rats in the streets, as a counterweight to the Mexican stereotypes that she claims the original film presents.[100]
In March 2025, after herAcademy Award win, Saldaña stated about the film: "I'm very, very sorry that [...] so many Mexicans felt offended. That was never our intention. We spoke from a place of love. [...] For me, the heart of this movie was not Mexico. We were making a film about friendship. We were making a film about four women. These women could have beenRussian, could have beenDominican, could have been black fromDetroit, could have been fromIsrael, could have been fromGaza. And these women are still very universal women that are struggling every day, but trying to survive systemic oppression and trying to find the most authentic voices. So I will stand by that, but I'm also always open to sit down with all of my Mexican brothers and sisters, with love and respect, [to have] a great conversation on howEmilia could have been done better."[101]
Both critics and audiences resented the lack of "sensitivity and context" on theissue of drug trafficking,[102][91][103] with some Mexican journalists and influencers calling it "narcomusical".[104][105][106] The film was also criticised as an "insensitive caricature" that is an apologism to drug traffickers.[107]
After being questioned about the reception of the film in Mexico, which had not yet been officially released in the country at the time, Mexican actress Adriana Paz, part of the cast ofEmilia Pérez, defended her work and recalled that the film is a work of fiction, arguing that "it is an operetta in which people sing and do things that we would not do in reality. All opinions are acceptable, what I find ugly is the violence with which they are expressed".[108]
In January 2025, during her daily morning press conference, Las Mañaneras, the President of Mexico,Claudia Sheinbaum, defended freedom of expression and rejected censorship. She also emphasized the need for Mexico to be recognized for its history, culture, and traditions, not for negative stereotypes of drug trafficking that she believes the film could reinforce. She noted that tourism continues to grow in Mexico, indicating that the country's image is not damaged, and highlighted the pride of the Mexican people and the importance of promoting their cultural richness. She considered that the French film, by addressing the issues of drug trafficking and disappearances, could be validating prejudices and a distorted European view of Mexico, something that does not align with the country's reality.[109]
Several statements by the film's director, Jacques Audiard, generated controversy. In an interview he implied that he had not studied the Mexican context in depth: "No, I didn't study that much. What I had to understand I already knew a little", although these statements, originally in French, were translated at the time by someone else.[110][111]
In another interview, Jacques Audiard stated that "Spanish is a language of emerging countries, of modest countries, of poor people and migrants". Audiard later claimed that his comments were taken out of context and that he actually has a great appreciation for the Spanish language: "What has been said is the opposite of what I think".[112] Audiard also said that they wanted bigger-name stars instead of Mexicans in order to be able to finance the film.[113]
To address the controversy, Gascón arranged an hour-long TV interview withCNN en Español, where she became emotional and repeated that she was not racist throughout the interview and compared her struggles to the struggles of black people,which eventually intensified the backlash since viewers considered the segment as "hollow" and disliked the comments she made throughout it.[failed verification][117][118]The backlash extended to Gascón's co-star Zoe Saldaña.[failed verification][119] Following these statements, Netflix decided to no longer fund Gascón's travel or fashion for the remainder of awards season and removed her fromEmilia Pérez's awards campaign, releasing a new poster excluding her and enlisting the film's numerous wins and big nomination tallies.[120]
Jacques Audiard stated that he was no longer in contact with Gascón after her apology.[121] Following Audiard's comments, Gascón posted a statement onInstagram, stating that she would step back in hope that her silence would "allow the film to be appreciated for what it is, a beautiful ode to love and difference". She reiterated her apology about the tweets she made.[122]
While Gascón did not attend the39th Goya Awards, the controversy surrounding her statements was present throughout the event. On the red carpet, several Spanish film and industry personalities, such as directorJ. A. Bayona and rapperC. Tangana, expressed their sadness at the situation, with Bayona calling it a "lynching" while highlighting the quality ofEmilia Pérez.[123][124] In February 2025, it was announced that Gascón would attend both the50th Cesar Awards and the97th Academy Awards.[125]
^Marshall, Lee (18 May 2024)."'Emilia Perez': Cannes Review".Screen Daily.Archived from the original on 28 December 2024.A Mexican cartel kingpin's gender reassignment propels Jacques Audiard's sensitive Spanish-language musical...
^abH Mora, Luis Angel (18 December 2024)."Mexicanos explotan contra Karla Sofía Gascón y Emilia Pérez; la actriz bloquea a internautas en redes y los acusa de transfobia y racismo".Infobae.Archived from the original on 29 December 2024. Retrieved30 December 2024.No obstante, sin importar el género cinematográfico, la propuesta ha generado descontento entre el público mexicano, quienes consideran que la obra carece de sensibilidad y contexto, algo que la protagonista, Karla Sofía Gascón, ha defendido con vehemencia en sus redes sociales. Ante los comentarios en redes sociales, Gascón en lugar de dialogar, optó por bloquear y denunciar a los internautas que expresaron opiniones negativas, acusándolos de transfobia y racismo, lo que desató aún mayor indignación.
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