Emilia Pérez leads the pack of 2025 Oscar hopefuls with a whopping 13 nominations, but the movie has faced several different controversies. Karla Sofía Gascón is at the center of the musical drama as a powerful Mexican mob boss who hires a lawyer (Zoe Saldaña) to help her fake her death and undergoes gender-affirming surgery.

The nominations announcement followed a challenging voting period, twice extended due to devastating wildfires in Los Angeles. According to Variety, the March Oscars telecast will include a tribute to the firefighters who battled the blazes,

‘Emilia Perez’ leads the nominations for the upcoming Academy Awards with a record-breaking 14. The French musical thriller joins an elite group of films achieving this milestone, matching the nominations received by “All About Eve” (1950) and “La La Land” (2016). Industry experts predict the film could break several records on Oscar night.

Emilia Pérez” and “The Brutalist” are expected to contend for best picture.

With a baker’s dozen nominations, including the first for an openly transgender actress, “Emilia Pérez” has emerged as the Oscar front-runner.

The only other time that two musicals have each received double-digit Oscar nods in the same year was at the 1965 ceremony, where Mary Poppins had 13 nods, while My Fair Lady had