BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) nominated Michael B. Lewis for his portrayal of Tourette syndrome campaigner John Davidson. Jordan and Delroy Lindo have issued an apology after making racial remarks as they presented the award for best visual effects at Sunday’s awards ceremony.
Sinners stars Michael and Delroy were presenting the Best Visual Effects award at the 79th annual awards show when John could be heard shouting a racist slur, the N-word.
bafta apologizes
on monday, BAFTA issued a statement saying it took full responsibility for “putting its guests in a very difficult position” and apologized to all of us. The organization also apologized “unreservedly” to Michael and Delroy.
The incident sparked outrage in the film community and on social media over BAFTA and the BBC’s decision not to cut racial slurs and profanity from the broadcast, despite the show being broadcast on a two-hour delay.
“Our guests at the BAFTA Film Awards last night heard deeply offensive language that caused immeasurable shock and anguish to many people. We want to acknowledge the harm this has caused, address what happened and apologize to everyone involved,” the statement said.
The note continued, “One of our guests, John Davidson MBE, suffers from Tourette syndrome and has dedicated his life to education and promotion of a better understanding of the condition. Tourette syndrome causes involuntary verbal tics over which the individual has no control. Such tics are in no way a reflection of a person’s beliefs and are not intentional. John Davidson is the executive producer of the BAFTA nominated film, I Swear, which Based on his life experience.”
Through the statement, BAFTA also mentioned that it wanted to “unreservedly apologize” to Michael and Delroy.
The statement read, “We take the duty of care to all of our guests very seriously and start from a position of inclusion. We took measures to make attendees aware of ticks, by announcing to the audience before and throughout the ceremony that John was in the room and that they may hear strong language, involuntary noises or movements during the ceremony.
“Many people in the room at the beginning of the ceremony heard a loud slur of what appeared to be extremely offensive words. Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage at the time, and we apologize unreservedly to them and everyone affected. We want to thank Michael and Delroy for their incredible dignity and professionalism.”
The organization also acknowledged John, who watched the rest of the show from the screen after leaving the ceremony.
It added, “During the ceremony, John decided to leave the auditorium and watch the remainder of the ceremony from a screen, and we would like to thank him for his dignity and consideration of others during what should have been a night of celebration for him. We take full responsibility for putting our guests in a very difficult position and we apologize to everyone.”
The statement concluded, “We will learn from this, and will keep inclusion at the core of everything we do, maintaining our belief in film and storytelling as an important medium for compassion and empathy.”
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The awards ceremony saw an unexpected disruption when Tourette’s activist John Davidson shouted a racist slur (the N-word), while actor Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were performing on stage, sparking controversy online. Michael was momentarily stunned, pausing briefly as Delroy attempted to regain his composure and continue his presentation.
Later, host Alan Cumming stopped the show and explained that the ‘strong language’ was not voluntary, but on behalf of John, who has Tourette’s. John was at the awards ceremony, as he is the subject of the film I Swear, in which he is played by Robert Aramayo. He is known for speaking openly about living with Tourette syndrome. He has worked for years to raise awareness and support others with the condition. In 2018 he received an honor from Queen Elizabeth II for his efforts.
On Monday, John said he was “very hurt” after shouting a racial slur at the awards ceremony, saying it was caused by an “involuntary tic”.