'Emilia Pérez' Star Karla Sofía Gascón Says She's Facing Death Threats After Her Racist Tweets Resurfaced

Karla Sofía Gascón, star of the Oscar-nominated Emilia Pérez, remains under fire after her past controversial tweets resurfaced.

But the Spanish actress, who recently made history as the first openly transgender nominee for Best Actress at the Academy Awards, has apologized and subsequently deleted her social media accounts after facing backlash and death threats, she says.

"I'm sorry, but I can no longer allow this campaign of hate and misinformation to affect me and my family, so at their request, I am closing my account on X," Gascón told The Hollywood Reporter.

"I have been threatened with death, insulted, abused," she added.

The controversy began when old tweets from Gascón surfaced online earlier this week, including posts criticizing Muslim culture, George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars. Journalist Sarah Hagi and others widely shared screenshots of her tweets on social media, sparking a heated debate.

What Karla Sofía Gascón Tweeted

In one 2020 tweet, Gascón reportedly wrote about Muslim women wearing burkas: "Islam is marvelous, without any machismo.

Women are respected, and when they are so respected, they are left with a little squared hole on their faces for their eyes to be visible."

Another post criticized George Floyd, per Variety, stating, "Very few people ever cared about George Floyd, a drug addict swindler," while also condemning police brutality and racism.

Gascón has since apologized for the posts, calling them hurtful.

"I want to acknowledge the conversation around my past social media posts that have caused hurt," she said in a statement. "As someone in a marginalized community, I know this suffering all too well and I am deeply sorry to those I have caused pain."

She ended her apology with a plea for understanding: "All my life I have fought for a better world. I believe light will always triumph over darkness."

Despite her apology, the backlash continues. Social media users have questioned how the Emilia Pérez cast and the Academy will address the controversy. Netflix, the movie's distributor, has yet to comment on the matter.

The situation escalated after Gascón accused fans of fellow Best Actress nominee Fernanda Torres of contributing to the backlash, according to People. However, she later clarified that Torres and her team had shown her support and were not involved in any negative actions against her.

Gascón's achievements in the film industry, including winning Best Actress at Cannes, have been overshadowed by the resurfaced tweets.