2025 Oscar nominations: A bit of a let down

Rachel Sennott and Bowen Yang took to Beverly Hills’ Samuel Goldwyn Theater stage Jan. 23 to announce nominations for the 97th Academy Awards. The show will broadcast from LA’s Dolby Theater March 2 at 7 p.m., with Conan O’Brien replacing Jimmy Kimmel as host.

This year’s Oscars have drawn particular attention in the wake of Los Angeles’ recent wildfires. In fact, the fires have already affected the show, causing nominations to be postponed twice. 

At the time of the nomination announcement, many Best Picture nominees had yet to decide which producers to nominate alongside the film, leading to a number of “to be determined” listings. During the nominations show, Sennott and Yang repeatedly announced that these films had “nominees TBD,” which became a running joke the academy has capitalized on by selling “Nominees to be Determined” shirts.

The Academy has so far avoided LA fire-related controversies but has not escaped debate, most notably due to “Emilia Peréz.” This Spanish-language French musical, which follows a Mexican cartel boss (Karla Sofía Gascón) who fakes her death in order to undergo gender reassignment surgery, secured a whopping 13 nominations – the most of this year, putting it on par with films like “Gone with the Wind” and “Mary Poppins.” This falls just shy of the all-time record for most Oscar nominations at 14, held by acclaimed films like “Titanic” and “La La Land.”

Viewers have accused “Emilia Peréz” of misrepresenting Mexican culture and transgender experiences. The film largely lacks Mexican representation, as it was made by a French director, shot in France and stars a Spanish actress. It also sensationalizes sex-change operations while oversimplifying the transition experience. The song that has caught the Internet’s attention,“La Vaginoplastia,” details the process of finding a doctor who is willing to perform a sex-change operation. It adopts a mocking tone through monotonous singing, poor intonation and arbitrary screams, creating an uncomfortable and messy listening experience.

The musical trivializes Mexican culture, with a lyric from the song “Papa” being “You smell like spicy food, spicy spicy.” Along with its mediocre soundtrack, the film is scattered; the first half discusses the protagonist’s transition, while the second devolves into a wacky Mrs. Doubtfire-esque plot. While “Emilia Peréz” attempts to highlight Mexican and transgender voices, its casting choices, songs and plot make for a counter-productive film that does not deserve 13 Oscar nominations.

Additionally, the movie’s chances win awards may have been soiled by recent controversies surrounding Gascón. Writer Sarah Hagi has uncovered and reposted Gascón’s tweets to shed light on a series of questionable statements. These include everything from voicing support for Hitler and his antisemitic beliefs to attacking Islam to various racist and homophobic comments.

Gascón has since issued an apology, stating that “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 deleted her X account but refused to withdraw her nomination in an interview with CNN, attributing her tweets to “irony, sarcasm and, at times, exaggeration” while claiming that she has not “harmed anyone.”

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