Karla Sofía Gascón Plans to Attend the Oscars Despite Racist Post Controversy

Expect to see Karla Sofía Gascón at the Oscars next weekend. On Monday, the actress confirmed she will be in attendance at the Academy Awards, despite the controversy surrounding her social media posts.

“I’m not sure how I feel, but I’m grateful to be back,” Gascón told The Hollywood Reporter on Monday. “I’m grateful to all those who’ve believed in me — to Netflix, the production company, and my colleagues. We can close this beautiful and difficult path that began three years ago.”

A source confirmed to Rolling Stone that Gascón is going to the ceremony and that it is customary for studios to cover travel for talent.

Gascón — who is the first out transgender woman to be nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars — missed out on several awards shows this month, including the BAFTAs and Sunday’s SAG Awards, after facing intense backlash for her resurfaced posts where she made racially charged comments about Black people, immigrants, and Muslims. Amid the uproar, Netflix seemed to distance itself from the actress, removing her from several For Your Consideration posters.

Offensive posts by Gascón from 2020 and 2021 surfaced online last month, many of which included controversial comments about the killing of George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars. At least 12 posts were aimed at Muslims, as Gascón described Islam as an “infection for humanity” and described the migration of Muslims into Spain as a “planned invasion.”

Gascón deleted her account shortly after and told THR that she did so because she could “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.” (She later joined CNN En Español over the weekend for a tearful, hour-long interview in which she claimed she had been subject to “cancel culture.”)

Gascón’s co-star Zoe Saldaña said during a recent Q&A that she does “not support” Gascón’s posts and was still “processing” her feelings, while co-star Selena Gomez said “some of the magic has disappeared.” (Saldaña is up for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Emilia Pérez.)

Last week, Netflix’s Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria called the whole thing “really a bummer” last week. The film’s director Jacques Audiard also told Deadline that Gascón’s past tweets were “inexcusable” and “hateful,” and accused her of “playing the victim.”