Baftas 2025: ‘Emilia Perez’ wins ‘Best Film Not in the English Language’
The controversy surrounding Netflix’s Emilia Pérez and its star Karla Sofía Gascón left many people thinking the movie’s awards season chances had been obliterated in an instant, but the Baftas had no issue declaring it the best international feature of the last 12 months.
Competing against All We Imagine as Light, Kneecap, I’m Still Here, and The Seed of the Sacred Fig, it was director Jacques Audiard’s musical drama that was named ‘Best Film Not in the English Language’, hinting that perhaps the picture hasn’t been completely eliminated from the awards season running.
The offensive social media posts made by Gascón years ago understandably left a bad taste in the mouths of many, including her colleagues. Audiard had previously said that her comments were “inexcusable,” and when asked if he’d spoken to her about the backlash, he offered a straight-to-the-point, “I don’t want to,” in response.
When taking the stage to collect the Bafta for ‘Best Film Not in the English Language’, Audiard spoke glowingly of cinema and even mentioned the late David Lynch as an inspiration. It was a smart move to cast an eye over the entire industry and not his own film, especially when the buzz surrounding Emilia Pérez has been less than glowing.
“I’m very much touched. First of all, I’d like to thank the Baftas for this honour. This award isn’t just for me; it’s for everyone who worked tirelessly on this film. This award is for all of us,” he said. “I would like to salute my fellow nominees. From Ireland, India, Iran or Brazil, we all tried to talk about the world in our own ways with our own tools and sensibilities.”
“Through cinema, we weave narratives that try to push back the boundaries a little. to question the conventions, even if that means breaking some rules along the way to the question, ‘Why do you make films?’ David Lynch replied, ‘To create a world and experience it’. I don’t know if Emilia Pérez‘s world matches our world at all, but tonight, I’d like to thank the wonderful talent who helped create it and believed in us.”
However, Audiard did thank everyone who worked “tirelessly” on the film, which included Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez, and Gascón. While it may be surprising to some that awards season isn’t trying to sweep her under the rug, it would be impossible for the people involved with Emilia Pérez to win awards and not acknowledge the leading star.
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