I’ve said repeatedly that identity campaigns have become passe. Lily Gladstone‘s was the last such campaign to have an impact. Nonetheless Netflix and Emilia Perez star Karla Sofia Gascon are currently riding this horse around the track.

The basic idea conveyed by Julian Sancton’s 1.11.25 THR profile is that Gascon is a “controversial” figure, which in the realm of respect and decency is a fringe fallacy. Gascon is certainly a historical figure, yes, but broadcasting the fact that she’s had to contend with online haters doesn’t enhance her brief. Who cares what ugly people are saying on social media?

Gascon has given an entirely respectable, emotionally forceful performance as the titular character in Jacques Audiard‘s audacious musical drama, although not (be honest) an Oscar-worthy one. Respect but no cigar. End of story.

“An Uh-Oh Moment for Karla Sofia Gascon,” posted on 11.2.24:

She’ll be Best Actress-nominated, of course, but in the blink of an eyelash our tectonic plates have shifted and…wait, what’s happening?…identity campaigns are no longer a compelling poker hand.

Or so says an 11.2 N.Y. Times article by Jeremy W. Peters and “Identity Trap” author Yascha Mounk in particular.

If you ask me Killers of the Flower Moon’s Lily Gladstone losing the Best Actress Oscar vote earlier this year to Poor Things’ Emma Stone was an early indication of this cultural-turning-the-road thang.