Selena Gomez Slammed as ‘Rich Rat’ by ‘Emilia Pérez’ Co-Star

In a clear demonstration that social media brings out the worst in people, past tweets reveal that Emilia Pérez star Karla Sofía Gascón called her co-star Selena Gomez a “rich rat” just as she prepared to star in the film, which has been nominated for 13 Oscars.

In a since-deleted 2022 X post, Gascón wrote in Spanish, “She’s a rich rat who plays the poor b------ whenever she can and will never stop bothering her ex-boyfriend and his wife,” in reference to Gomez’s ex-boyfriend Justin Bieber and wife, Haley. Gomez does not speak Spanish.

Gascón commented on the former couple’s seemingly affable reunion at the Annual Academy Museum Gala in October 2022. She likely already knew she would be working with Gomez on Emilia Pérez at the time of the tweet, reported The Latin Times.

Gascón has also landed in hot water for more controversial tweets. In several now-deleted posts, for which she has apologized, she railed against Islam and Muslims.

She called the religion an “infection” and berated “sexism” in the faith underneath a picture of a woman in a full burka, which she called “DISGUSTING.” She called followers “of Allah” “r------d” following a 2016 terrorist attack in France and added, “Their religion is INCOMPATIBLE with Western values.”

People characterized the tweets as “racist” and “xenophobic.” In response to the controversy, Gascón told People on Jan 30, “As someone in a marginalized community, I know this suffering all too well and I am deeply sorry to those I have caused pain.”

In a Saturday Instagram post, Gascón responded to the backlash in Spanish. “I am not a racist,” she wrote, arguing that her tweets appear “hateful” without context.

Gascón also told The Hollywood Reporter, that there has been a “campaign of hate and misinformation” in response to her statements as she deactivated her X account.

The Beast has reached out to Gomez for comment.