A Netflix chief has said it is a “bummer” that social media posts by an Emilia Perez actress are distracting from the impact of the film.
The Spanish language movie, which stars US actresses Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez and is directed by Jacques Audiard, tells the story of a Mexican cartel boss who enlists the help of a lawyer to assume a new identity as a woman.
Its main star, Spanish actress Karla Sofia Gascon, has stepped back from promoting the film after previous social media posts she made about Islam, the death of George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars resurfaced following the musical’s release.
Gascon has apologised and said she would be letting “the work talk for itself”, adding that she is “hoping my silence will allow the film to be appreciated for what it is”.
Asked what she wants to say to Gascon, Netflix chief content officer Bela Bajaria told podcast The Town With Matthew Belloni: “What I think is really a bummer for 100 very incredibly talented people who made an amazing movie.
“And if you look at the nominations, and all of this awards love that it’s received, I think it’s such a bummer that it’s distracted from that.
“It really has kind of taken the conversation in a different way, except for this incredible movie that Jacques Audiard – who is an incredible director – has made.
“And so to me, it really is a bummer for a lot of the people, like Zoe and Selena… and our awards team did an incredible campaign for that movie.”
Asked if Netflix would check social media posts of stars, Ms Bajaria said it is “not really common practice for people to vet social tweets that way”.
She added that she has heard that “people are re-evaluating that”, and it “raises question”.
When pressed if that meant Netflix is doing so, she replied “yes” and added: “I think you also have to think about too, are we going to actually look at the personal social media of the tens of thousand of people, every single day around the world, and the amount of original film and TV that we make and licensing and co-prods (productions).”
Ms Bajaria said that “the hardest thing, it does detract from the movie that is so special”, and added that Netflix “would still buy the movie today”.
“That movie is incredible and it’s creative and it’s bold, and that’s what you want, you want to take big swings,” she added. “That, by the way, resonated with a lot of people this year.”
Gascon was the first trans woman to be nominated for a Golden Globe and an Oscar in best actress categories.
It is the most-nominated film at this year’s Academy Awards with 13 nods including twice for original song, best actress for Gascon, best supporting actress for Saldana, and best director for Audiard.
