Karla Sofía Gascón has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in Emilia Pérez. The actress from Alcobendas thus becomes the first transgender person to receive a nomination in the acting categories in the history of the Oscars.
The Oscar nominations were announced this Thursday with a few days delay, after the fires in Los Angeles that affected numerous participants in the voting, forcing the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to postpone the scheduled announcement.
Alongside Karla Sofía Gascón, the nominees for Best Actress are: Demi Moore (The Substance), Cynthia Erivo (Wicked), Mikey Madison (Anora), and Fernanda Torres (I'm Still Here).
Written and directed by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard and filmed in Spanish, Emilia Pérez tells the story of a drug trafficker who changes gender. The film won the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival, which recognized the four actresses in the cast: Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, Zoe Saldaña, and Adriana Paz.
Several Spaniards were hoping for nominations but were left out. Neither Pedro Almodóvar for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Room Next Door, nor Alberto Iglesias for his soundtrack, nor the selected for the Best Short category, where Dani Feixas for Paris 70 and Àlex Lora for The Great Work had made the cut.
The nominees in the most important category, Best Picture, are: Anora, The Brutalist, A Complete Unknown, Conclave, Dune: Part 2, Emilia Pérez, I'm Still Here, Nickel Boys, The Substance, and Wicked.
The nominees for Best Actor are: Adrien Brody (The Brutalist), Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown), Colman Domingo (Sing Sing), Ralph Fiennes (Conclave), and Sebastian Stan (The Apprentice).
The Oscars ceremony has not changed its date and remains scheduled for March 2nd. It will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, and will be hosted for the first time by comedian and host Conan O'Brien.
The last time a Spaniard won an Oscar was in 2009 when Penélope Cruz, also from Alcobendas, received the award for Best Supporting Actress for Vicky Cristina Barcelona, the film directed by Woody Allen in Barcelona and in which Javier Bardem also starred.
Oppenheimer was the clear winner at the 2024 Oscars with seven awards, including Best Picture, Director, and Lead Actor.