WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Emilia Pérez.
Netflix’s crime comedy musicalEmilia Péreztakes place in many countries but was filmed in only one. Directed by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard (Rust and Bone,The Sisters Brothers), the genre-blending film delivers innovative music numbers and choreography infused with a gut-wrenching story about unfulfilled desire and regret.Emilia Pérezwon the Jury Prize and theBest Actress Ensemble award at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere in May. The film is a loose adaptation of the 2018 novelÉcouteby Boris Razon.
Emilia Pérezis France’s entry for Best International Feature at the upcoming 97th Academy Awards, which will be held on August 24, 2025. The film currently has a Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 82% and an audience score of 79%.Emilia Pérez’smostly favorable reviewshave made it an early contender for Best Picture and has also generatedBest Actress Oscar buzz for Gascón and Best Supporting Actress for Saldaña. The story follows Saldaña’s Rita Moro Castro, a defense lawyer in Mexico City looking to make a difference, who encounters an unusual but lucrative opportunity from cartel kingpin Manitas Del Monte as he aims to fulfill his lifetime dream of transitioning to a woman.
All Locations Visited In Emilia Pérez
The film travels to Thailand, Israel, Switzerland, and England
While there are quite a few settings inEmilia Pérez, the majority of the film takes place in Mexico City, Mexico. This is where all three main characters are from and where most of the plot unfolds both before and after Manitas Del Monte’s transition into Emila Pérez. Saldaña’s Rita flies to Bangkok, Thailand to meet with a surgeon and learn about the various surgeries required for the sex change.Rita then flies to Tel Aviv, Israel to meet with Dr. Wasserman, who ends up performing the procedures.
After helping Manitas fulfill his lifetime desire, Rita leaves Mexico City and lives a lavish life as a socialist in London, England. This is where she encounters Emila Pérez in the flesh for the first time years after her transition. Emilia asks Rita for her help in returning to Mexico City so that she can live with her two kids and Jessi, her former wife, posing as Manitas’s long-lost cousin.Rita had helped orchestrate their move to Lausanne, Switzerland, a peaceful lakeside community. She visits there to bring them back to Mexico City to be with Emilia.
Emilia Perez Was Shot In France - Was Anything Done On Location?
Most if not all of the film was shot in Paris, France
Despite all the globetrotting locations that appear inEmila Pérez, most of the film was shot in studios in Paris, France. None of the scenes are known to have been filmed on location in the aforementioned countries. However, Diego Fernando Diosa, who worked onNarcos, is credited as “Locations Scout: Mexico” inEmilia Pérez, indicating that some scenes could have been shot on location in Mexico. The choreographed scenes on the street at the beginning of the film could have potentially been shot in Mexico, or at the very least some of the landscape establishing shots.
Emilia Perez
Cast
Emilia Perez is a drama film that follows the life of Emilia Perez, a determined and ambitious individual striving to make a name for herself in a competitive environment. The story explores her journey as she navigates the challenges and obstacles that come her way, all while uncovering the complexities of her own identity.
