Emilia Pérez remains one of the most divisive movies of the past few years, and a new ranking has put it at the very top of an especially unflattering list.
Collider ranked Emilia Pérez as the worst Oscar-winning movie ever, placing the controversial Netflix crime musical ahead of several other films that have earned Academy Awards.
That doesn’t mean Emilia Pérez has been universally rejected by critics, though. The movie is currently Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 70% Tomatometer score from critics and a 73% Popcornmeter score from verified audiences.
The film also won two Oscars at the 97th Academy Awards, with Zoe Saldaña taking home Best Supporting Actress and “El Mal” winning Best Original Song.
Why Did ‘Emilia Pérez’ Become So Controversial?
Directed by Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez follows a Mexican cartel leader who fakes his death and undergoes gender-affirming surgery before attempting to start a new life as Emilia Pérez.
Karla Sofía Gascón stars as Emilia, with Saldaña playing Rita, the lawyer who helps her leave her former life behind. Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz also star.
The movie’s unusual combination of crime thriller, musical, melodrama, and trans narrative initially made it one of the most talked-about films of the 2024 awards season. It received 13 Oscar nominations, tying it for the second-most nominations ever received by a film. But its awards momentum was eventually overshadowed by controversy.
MovieWeb has highlighted several reasons for the backlash, including criticism of the film’s portrayal of Mexico, its depiction of transgender identity, and the decision to tell such a culturally specific story through a largely French filmmaking team.
The film was also criticized by Mexican viewers for its portrayal of the country, including its treatment of drug violence and the Spanish accents used by some of its cast members. GLAAD similarly criticized the movie’s representation of a trans woman.
The controversy surrounding Gascón herself further complicated the movie’s awards campaign after old social media posts containing offensive comments resurfaced during Oscar season. Gascón apologized for the posts, but the fallout became another major part of the conversation surrounding the film.
‘Emilia Pérez’ Still Has Plenty of Critical Support
Despite the backlash, calling Emilia Pérez universally disliked would be inaccurate. Rotten Tomatoes’ current score puts it firmly in the positive range with critics, and the site’s consensus describes the film as an ambitious, genre-bending musical crime thriller.
The movie also had a remarkably successful awards run before the backlash intensified. It won the Jury Prize and a shared Best Actress prize at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, followed by multiple Golden Globe wins and 13 Oscar nominations.
Ultimately, it won two Academy Awards.