"Films are supposed to change hearts and challenge minds," Saldana announced during her viral BAFTA acceptance speech. "And I hope I did something like this. Voices need to be heard."
This evening saw the 2025 BAFTA awards. And from the star-studded red carpet to the action-packed London ceremony, the British Academy Film Awards gave us a night to remember.
Among the big BAFTA winners of the evening was Zoe Saldana, who picked up the Best Supporting Actress gong for her critically-acclaimed role in Spanish-language musical Emilia Pérez.
And during her time on-stage, the 46-year-old actress delivered an emotional acceptance speech, with her powerful words going viral.
"I was told not to cry by my children, so I’ll try," Saldana told the audience as she picked up the award. "This is so validating and a true honour, because the very few times that I went for a part with a British accent or dialect coach, I was like, ‘This is not going to happen to you.’ Even though I have a lot of British friends, I find myself repeating all their phrases, and I know that I’m a pain in the arse."
"BAFTA thank you," she continued. "This was a creative challenge of a lifetime. How do you begin to even approach a film that not just defies categorisation, and you start by taking the leap with Jacques Audiard.
"Films are supposed to change hearts and challenge minds and I hope I did something like this. voices need to be heard, just not my English accent.
"I’m dedicating all of these awards and the film Emilia Pérez to my nephew, Eli," she continued. "He is the reason - they are the reason - I signed up to do this film in the first place. So as the proud aunt of a trans life, I will always stand with my community of trans people.”
Emilia Pérez also won BAFTA Awards for 'Best Film (Not In The English Language)'.
We will continue to update this story.
