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      A Turn as Trump Made Sebastian Stan an Unlikely Oscar Nominee

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      For years, it seemed fair to assume that the actor Sebastian Stan could make a career on both sides of Hollywood. There was dabbling in juicy supporting roles — he played the ex-husbands of both Tonya Harding and Pamela Anderson — while comfortably returning to the action-hero part for which he is best known: Bucky Barnes. As the erstwhile sidekick of Captain America, Stan has been a regular in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies since 2011 (including “Thunderbolts*,” which hits theaters in May). There are surely worse fates than simply maintaining that balance.“There’s a group of actors — I’ll put Colin Farrell in this group as well — that are so handsome that in some sense it works against them,” said Jessica Chastain, Stan’s friend and castmate in “The Martian” and “The 355.”While being too good-looking a movie star may be world’s-smallest-violin territory, a whirlwind year with two standout unconventional performances now has the 42-year-old cast in a very different light. It has also already brought in some leading-man hardware, with more maybe to come.In the surreal comedy “A Different Man,” an actor who has a condition that distorts his facial features has a medical procedure to make himself instead look classically attractive — specifically, to look like Sebastian Stan. Stan’s gutsy subversion of his looks won him the Silver Bear for leading performance at last year’s Berlin International Film Festival and the Golden Globe for acting in a comedy or musical last month.Sebastian Stan, an Oscar nominee for his portrayal of President Trump in “The Apprentice,” called the movie “a fresh lens on him — but also on an American truth that doesn’t always get picked apart in this way.”Caroline Tompkins for The New York TimesThe other movie, “The Apprentice,” is about a showy, morally questionable real estate mogul in 1970s and ’80s New York named Donald J. Trump. Stan plays Trump, his looks this time buried underneath both considerable physical makeup and all the figurative baggage viewers bring to the subject. From the movie’s premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last May, it was unclear if the film would find distribution and open in theaters, let alone be a part of awards season discussion.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Demi Moore, On the Verge of Her First Oscar

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      Demi Moore is the star of one of the goriest, most audacious films ever nominated for an Oscar, the feminist body-horror satire “The Substance.” Onscreen, Moore, 62, dissolves and mutates in often grisly ways — nude, and in extreme close-up. And she could not be more self-actualized about it.The role required “wrestling with the flashes of my own insecurity and ego,” Moore explained. “I was being asked to share those things that I don’t necessarily want people to see.”She was speaking in a video interview last week, dressed in casual black and big glasses, twisting and tucking her legs under her, on her office couch, with every thought. Filming through that discomfort was a “gift — silver lining, blessing, whatever you want to call it,” she continued. “Once you put it all out there, what else is there? There’s nothing to hide. Being able to let go was another layer of liberation for me.” The following night, she won the Critics Choice prize for best actress.Her career and cultural resurgence is overdue, said Ryan Murphy, the showrunner and a friend who at long last convinced her to work with him in last year’s “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans.” She had the beauty and aura of an old-school movie star, he said, with the professional discipline to match, but the flexibility of a seeker: “Game to do anything,” he said. “She’s a pathfinder. We all talk about what she’s done for the business and for other women.”“The universe told me that you’re not done,” Moore said in her acceptance speech at the Golden Globes, talking about her role in “The Substance” that has her on the verge of an Oscar.And, he added, “she is one of the most emotionally intelligent people that you’ll ever meet. Whenever I have an emotional dilemma or I need advice, I do not go to my shrink — I go to her.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      What to Know About the Karla Sofía Gascón and ‘Emilia Pérez’ Controversies

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      The actress’s old social media posts have threatened to derail the film’s Oscar campaign, but backlash has been building for months for other reasons.When “Emilia Pérez” premiered at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival last May, the reaction from critics in attendance and the jury was overwhelmingly positive.The French-produced, Spanish-language musical about a Mexican cartel boss who transitions into a woman and attempts to become a paragon of virtue won the jury prize (essentially third place) and its stars — Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz — shared the best actress award.Netflix, the powerful global streaming company that has had a best picture Oscar in its sights but out of its grasp since the 2019 ceremony, acquired the unconventional picture by the French director Jacques Audiard and launched an imposing awards campaign. Widely embraced by the film industry, “Emilia Pérez” received 13 Oscar nominations last month — leading this year’s pack and falling one short of tying the record.One of those nominations belongs to Gascón, who plays the titular character and became the first openly trans actor nominated for an Academy Award. In recent weeks, she has become engulfed in controversy that has threatened to derail the awards hopes for both her and the film. But since “Emilia Pérez” debuted in select theaters and then on Netflix late last year, there has been plenty of backlash on multiple fronts that has marred its pathway to Oscar glory. Here are the broad strokes of the controversies.Karla Sofía Gascón’s Resurfaced Social Media PostsLast week, the journalist Sarah Hagi unearthed offensive statements that Gascón posted in Spanish on X over the last few years. The disparaging comments touched on topics like George Floyd, Islam, and even the 2021 Oscar ceremony.Gascón has since apologized, deleted her X account and given a lengthy interview on CNN en Español that she booked without Netflix’s involvement or authorization. She has also stayed active on Instagram, defending herself against criticism.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘Emilia Pérez’ and the New Era of Online Oscar Scandals

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      As Karla Sofía Gascón’s resurfaced social media posts upend the campaign for the year’s most-nominated film, what happens now?Last August, when I first met and interviewed the “Emilia Pérez” star Karla Sofía Gascón, she told me that she was not the type of person to back down from a conflict.“I’m a great warrior,” Gascón said then. “I love to fight. If it was up to me, I would go to all the talk shows and fight with everybody all the time.”She shared this to illustrate how fraught her life had become in the years leading up to “Emilia Pérez,” when Gascón, previously known to Mexican audiences for her work in telenovelas, came out publicly as a trans woman. But that hint at her combative nature could also have been considered something of a sneak preview, now that the newly Oscar-nominated actress has become embroiled in a scandal — and embarked on a defiant media blitz — that has imperiled both her career and the formerly front-running awards campaign of “Emilia Pérez.”As recently as last week, the 52-year-old actress and the Spanish-language musical she stars in were riding high. With a field-leading 13 Oscar nominations, “Emilia Pérez” represented Netflix’s strongest shot at finally nabbing its first best-picture trophy, while Gascón had already made history as the first openly trans actress to be nominated for an Oscar.Gascón is the first openly trans actress to be nominated for an Oscar.Pathé FilmsThen, last Wednesday, the journalist Sarah Hagi unearthed years-old posts Gascón had written on X that denigrated Muslims (saying Islam was “becoming a hotbed of infection for humanity that urgently needs to be cured”), called George Floyd a “drug-addicted con artist,” and criticized the diverse winners of the 2021 Oscar telecast (“I didn’t know if I was watching an Afro-Korean festival, a Black Lives Matter demonstration or the 8-M”). In a statement issued by Netflix the next day, Gascón apologized for the posts. But instead of allowing the dust to settle, the star took matters into her own hands.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      The Vocal Coach Who Helped Timothée Chalamet and Other Stars Sing Onscreen

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      “Help” is a word that the vocal coach Eric Vetro uses often to describe his contributions to the careers of celebrities. This season alone, he’s helped several actors with the musical demands of roles as varied as Maria Callas (Angelina Jolie in “Maria”), Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet in “A Complete Unknown”) and a young Good Witch of the West (Ariana Grande in “Wicked”). He also worked with Monica Barbaro to honor Joan Baez’s vibrato in “A Complete Unknown” and Nicholas Galitzine to become a boy-band dreamboat in “The Idea of You.”During a recent video interview, Vetro’s high-profile résumé came into sharp focus. The memorabilia behind him in his Los Angeles home, which was unaffected by the recent fires, included a guitar that Shawn Mendes had given him. He proudly pointed to platinum records from the Recording Industry Association of America certifying a million in sales for Ariana Grande’s single “The Way” and Rosalía’s album “Motomami.” Then he turned to a wall of selfies with his famous students: “There is Katy Perry. Camila Cabello and Sabrina Carpenter are right here.”He explained that his clients’ technical and emotional needs vary, and that holding their hands through the psychological ups and downs of being a famous talent is a big part of his work. So many jobs “rest on this one person’s success,” Vetro, 68, explained. “That’s a tremendous amount of pressure.”Vetro helped both Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez and Timothée Chalamet bring out their characters’ signature sound in “A Complete Unknown.”Searchlight PicturesWhile growing up in upstate New York there were early signs that Vetro was more into behind-the-scenes guidance than stardom. He would correct a cousin while they sang Christmas carols and lend a hand to friends learning songs for musicals. As early as fifth grade, when a fellow student who was popular and athletic asked him for assistance with a song, Vetro remembered, “We just bonded. And that made me think, ‘I have something special here. This is my identity.’”His parents were skeptical, especially his father. “He would say things like, ‘What makes you think that anybody of note would want to work with you?’” when as a boy he would bring up stars like Bette Midler as examples of people he wanted to work with.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Phyllis Dalton, Oscar-Winning Costume Designer for Historical Epics, Dies at 99

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      Phyllis Dalton, a British costume designer whose unflinching attention to detail earned her Oscars for “Doctor Zhivago” and “Henry V” and acclaim for her emotive, striking costumes in “Lawrence of Arabia,” died on Jan. 9 at her home in Somerset, England. She was 99.The death was confirmed by her stepson, James Barton.Ms. Dalton’s keen eye was most apparent in period dramas and historical epics. She was known for her subtlety, crafting clothing that blended seamlessly into each film’s era.“Anyone can make a smart frock,” she said in a brochure that was handed out during a 2012 British Academy of Film and Television Arts tribute to her. “It’s much more difficult to make people from the past who are wearing ordinary clothes look real.”Phyllis Margaret Dalton was born on Oct. 16, 1925, in Chiswick, a suburb of London, to William John Tysoe Dalton, who worked for the Great Western Railway, and Elizabeth Marion (Mason) Dalton, who worked at a bank. Phyllis began studying costume design at Ealing Art College at 13 and later became a code breaker in the Women’s Royal Naval Service at the facility at Bletchley Park, a role she once said she considered “unbelievably boring.”One of Ms. Dalton’s earliest stints in wardrobe was on the 1950 crime melodrama “Eye Witness.” She honed her skills working on costumes for Alfred Hitchcock’s 1956 remake of “The Man Who Knew Too Much,” Robert Rossen’s “Island in the Sun” (1957) and Carol Reed’s “Our Man in Havana” (1959). In the 1960s, she completed two of her most renowned designs three years apart, dressing entire armies for “Lawrence of Arabia” (1962) and “Doctor Zhivago” (1965).After 50 years of experience on more than 40 feature films, including “The Princess Bride” (1987), she earned her last credit on Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of “Much Ado About Nothing” in 1993.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Karla Sofía Gascón, ‘Emilia Pérez’ Star, Apologizes for Posts on Muslims, George Floyd and China

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      The Oscar-nominated actress, who plays a cartel leader in “Emilia Pérez,” was criticized for derogatory comments about Muslims, George Floyd and China.Karla Sofía Gascón, the star of the movie musical “Emilia Pérez” and the first openly transgender actor to be nominated for an Academy Award, apologized on Thursday after social media posts she wrote denigrating Muslims, George Floyd and China were resurfaced.“I want to acknowledge the conversation around my past social media posts that have caused hurt,” Gascón, 52, said in a statement provided by Netflix, the distributor of “Emilia Pérez.” “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.”In one of the posts on X, which were published in Spanish and shared in screenshots by the journalist Sarah Hagi, Gascón wrote that Islam was “becoming a hotbed of infection for humanity that urgently needs to be cured.” In another, she wrote that “the religion is INCOMPATIBLE with Western values.”Gascón also described Floyd as a “drug-addicted con artist” in a 2020 post criticizing people who were protesting his deadly arrest by police officers. Later that year, during the coronavirus pandemic, she wrote that “the Chinese vaccine, in addition to the mandatory chip, comes with two spring rolls.”She deleted her account on Friday.Gascón, who came out as a trans woman in 2016, was born in Spain and was a star of Mexican telenovelas before landing the title role in “Emilia Pérez,” in which she plays a cartel leader who goes into hiding after a gender transition. The movie leads the pack with 13 Oscar nominations, including for best picture. More

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      European Directors Sometimes Get Lost in Translation When Going Hollywood

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      The history of European directors “going Hollywood” and making the leap to English-language filmmaking is long and uneven.When Pedro Almodóvar’s “The Room Next Door” won the Golden Lion for best film at this year’s Venice Film Festival, it was the first time that the Spanish director had garnered the top prize at one of Europe’s major film festivals. What made this victory even more impressive and unusual was the fact that “The Room Next Door” was Almodóvar’s first full-length film in English.For a leading auteur of contemporary cinema, and one whose work is so bound up with the textures of his native tongue, Almodóvar’s late-career shift to English-language filmmaking feels daring. If the film’s reception at Venice is any indication, it appears that the gamble has paid off and that he has succeeded where many others have failed.Almodóvar, 75, is only the latest in a long line of European directors to make the leap to English-language filmmaking. The history of such transitions is uneven, and ranges from the Golden Age Hollywood classics of the Austrian-born Billy Wilder to infamous missteps by Ingmar Bergman and François Truffaut.The Hungarian filmmaker Kornel Mundruczo said that both working in English and directing Hollywood stars presents European directors with a unique set of hurdles. “It was a huge challenge to understand the cultural differences and not to create something which is symbolically, say, sinking into the Atlantic Ocean,” he said, recalling the making of his English-language debut, “Pieces of a Woman,” in a recent phone interview.“There are so many movies like that,” added Mundruczo, who finished shooting “At the Sea,” his new film starring Amy Adams, in Boston this August.Kornel Mundruczo, center, on set with Ellen Burstyn, left, and Vanessa Kirby in 2020, making “Pieces of a Woman.” Mundruczo, a Hungarian filmmaker, has found creative opportunities working in English.Philippe Bosse/Netflix, via Everett CollectionWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More