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Jacques Audiard took to the stage at Deadline’s Contenders London this morning with the cast of his female-fronted musical crime thriller, Emilia Perez, including Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldaña and Selena Gomez. Starring Gascón in a dual role, the Cannes prize-winner tells the story of Manitas, a notorious cartel boss who hires a struggling lawyer (Saldaña) to fake his death, facilitate his transition, and help him start a new life as a woman.
Discussing the film’s bold decision to use song and dance to tell Emilia’s story, Audiard revealed it was a choice made very early on in the process. “It very, very quickly became apparent to me that this film shouldn’t take a fixed form,” he said, “because it was a film that takes us on a journey. So, fundamentally, the DNA of the film is opera. And opera gives us so much freedom. It allows for all these forms, and it allows us to sing and dance and so on.”
Asked what attracted her to the role, Gascón said it was Audiard’s respect for the character that sealed the deal. “One of the most important things for me when I first read the script, and one of the first things I spoke to Jacques about, was Manitas’ motivation for wanting to become a woman,” she said. “Because it would’ve changed the film radically if Manitas only wanted to become a woman to flee the law, as opposed to wanting to become a woman because he really felt, inside, that he was trapped in the wrong body. I think Jacques made the right decision, and he made all the right decisions throughout the film. That’s why, I think, the film has enjoyed the success it has had with audiences. He completely made the right decision regarding Manitas’ motive, because, if not, the film could have just become a banal comedy that would really have just stayed at a superficial level.”
Though Gascón is undoubtedly the star of the show, stellar support comes from Saldaña as Rita, the lawyer who becomes the keeper of Emilia’s secrets. “It was important to understand where Rita was coming from and who she really was,” said Saldaña. “To me, she is a person that doesn’t have the courage to speak for herself. She’s underworked, overlooked, desperate for change, but she wants power, she wants influence, and she wants success. So understanding that this was a Faustian deal that she was going to immediately take — and never look back — was important to me, because she also goes through a transition. It’s not as obviously accentuated and intense and rich as Emilia’s [transition], but she does really shed this old skin and become a different person by the time Emilia meets her again three years later.”
Co-star Gomez, who plays Manitas/Emilia’s ex-wife Jesse, revealed that she was willing to audition for the role. “I wanted to be a part of this for many reasons,” she said. “As an actor, you’re so lucky to work with someone like Jacques. And as an individual, I’m so honored to learn from these amazing women. I don’t think we all expected it to do all this, but we’re really grateful. And the experience for me is hopefully a stepping stone into what I’m capable of doing and what I’m willing to do to get there.”
