Oscar Nominee Karla Sofía Gascón Faces Backlash over Resurfaced Controversial Social Media Posts

Emilia Pérez actress Karla Sofía Gascón is facing backlash after her past controversial comments made on social media were resurfaced.

The Spanish star, 52, became the first openly transgender actress to be nominated for the Best Actress Oscar when nominations were unveiled Jan. 23 and Netflix’s Jacques Audiard-directed Emilia Pérez led with 13 nods. Her historic recognition followed nominations for a Screen Actors Guild Award and Golden Globe.

Among her since-deleted posts on X that garnered backlash, as shared by journalist Sarah Hagi in screenshots this week, are comments about Muslim culture, George Floyd, diversity and more.

In a post reportedly reacting to the 2021 Academy Awards ceremony, according to Variety, Gascón wrote, translated to English, "More and more the #Oscars are looking like a ceremony for independent and protest films, I didn’t know if I was watching an Afro-Korean festival, a Black Lives Matter demonstration or the 8M. Apart from that, an ugly, ugly gala.”

Related: Emilia Pérez's Karla Sofía Gascón Clarifies Comment About Fellow Best Actress Oscar Nominee Fernanda Torres

In a deleted 2020 post, the actress allegedly wrote, "Is it just my impression or are there more muslims in Spain? Every time I go to pick up my daughter from school there are more women with their hair covered and their skirts down to their heels. Next year instead of English we’ll have to teach Arabic.”

One X user, linking to Hagi’s posts, wrote that they are “curious about how the emilia perez cast and academy voters will respond to karla sofia gascon’s islamophobic and vile tweets. the fact that these tweets span years, and there are so many of them, prove that these are her consistent and blatant beliefs.”

In a statement to PEOPLE on Jan. 30, Gascón addressed the resurfaced tweets. “I want to acknowledge the conversation around my past social media posts that have caused hurt," she said. "As someone in a marginalized community, I know this suffering all too well and I am deeply sorry to those I have caused pain. All my life I have fought for a better world. I believe light will always triumph over darkness.”

Netflix did not respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

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Related: Oscar Nominee Fernanda Torres Apologizes for Appearing in Blackface on Brazilian Comedy Show in 2008: ‘Never Acceptable'

Separately, Gascón recently released a statement clarifying her comments made in a Jan. 28 video interview apparently aimed at Brazil’s I’m Still Here star Fernanda Torres, her fellow Best Actress nominee.

Gascón had appeared to claim "there are people working with Fernanda Torres tearing me and Emilia Pérez down" but later clarified that she did not mean to suggest Torres, 59, or anyone "directly associated with her" is smearing Emilia Pérez.

Her remarks, Gascón said in the statement, were “referencing the toxicity and violent hate speech on social media that I sadly continue to experience." She added, "Fernanda has been a wonderful ally, and no one directly associated with her has been anything but supportive and hugely generous.”

In an X post on Jan. 29, one day before the resurfaced-tweet controversy, Gascón called herself “Public Enemy No. 1” and wrote, roughly translated to English, about “haters who try to invent a new controversy or a new way to insult me ​​every day. That's good because it awakens neurons, and with that maybe one day they'll be able to understand that hatred won't get them anywhere.”

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