Zoe Saldaña and Selena Gomez star in trailer for new movie ‘Emilia Pérez’

Posted On August 27, 2024August 27, 2024

After its crowning moment at the Cannes Film Festival, Netflix has shared the trailer for Jacques Audiard’s musical drama Emilia Pérez, starring Zoe Saldaña and Selena Gomez.

Emilia Pérez follows the story of Mexico City lawyer Rita, played by Saldaña, who experiences several personal and professional difficulties with her law firm so she takes an opportunity to support cartel leader Emilia Pérez, played by Karla Sofia Gascón, and help her flee the country with her wife, played by Gomez.

In the story, escaping the country will enable Pérez to remain safe from those who are seeking her out and allow her to pursue gender reassignment surgery. Alongside its more serious themes, the film’s musical element is shown in the new trailer, depicting its overall balance between its unfiltered LGBTQ+ narrative and lighter, stereotype-challenging qualities.

At the Cannes Film Festival, Emilia Pérez won the coveted ‘Jury Prize’, while Gascón, Gomez, and Saldaña jointly won the award for ‘Best Actress’. It was also selected to compete for the highest accolade, the Palme d’Or.

Gascón’s award made her the first transgender actor to win the award, which she acknowledged was a monumental achievement and one that wasn’t “just for me,” but “for everyone who is fighting to be themselves.”

She added: “We’ve had enough of the hatred we’ve had to endure. The message of this film is that there’s always a way to change and improve, no matter how distressing things may be.”

Earlier this month, Gomez shared that working on Emilia Pérez was her best experience since starring in the 2012 crime thriller, Spring Breakers. This was mainly due to her “incredible” experience working alongside director Audiard, who supported Gomez when she looked for new ways to connect with the character.

The film also marks her Spanish-speaking debut, which she recalls as being an enlightening process partially due to the flexibility of the director and the rest of the cast. She also explained how this enabled her to mould the character to her background, adding: “We were able to build the character, Jessi, around my ability, and I was so grateful for that.”

Given the film’s subject matter, it has not been immune to criticisms from gender-critical groups, but various cast members, including the titular actor Gascón, have spoken out against such discourse.

Following her win at Cannes, for instance, she filed a complaint against French far-right politician Marion Marechal for his “sexist insult due to one’s gender identity.” Still, the film remains one of the most highly-anticipated, with many eagerly awaiting to embrace its story and content with open arms.

Emilia Pérez will open in select theatres on November 1st before streaming on Netflix on November 13th.

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