BAFTA apologises for 'difficult situation' as they speak out for first time since racial slur incident
BAFTA has now apologised following last night's controversial moment which saw a racial slur shouted out during the awards.
Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo, who starred together in Sinners, were presenting an award when the N-word was shouted from the audience.
It later transpired to have been involuntarily shouted by John Davidson, who suffers from Tourette's syndrome, with the Scottish man in attendance after the film about his life, I Swear, was nominated.
In a statement, BAFTA said: "At the BAFTA Film Awards last night our guests heard very offensive language that carries incomparable trauma and pain for so many.
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"We want to acknowledge the harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all.
"One of our guests, John Davidson MBE, has Tourette Syndrome and has devoted his life to educating and campaigning for better understanding of this condition. Tourette Syndrome causes involuntary verbal tics, that the individual has no control over.
"Such tics are in no way a reflection of an individual’s beliefs and are not intentional. John Davidson is an executive producer of the BAFTA nominated film, I Swear, which is based on his life experience.
"We take the duty of care to all our guests very seriously and start from a position of inclusion. We took measures to make those in attendance aware of the tics, announcing to the audience before the ceremony began, and throughout, that John was in the room and that they may hear strong language, involuntary noises or movements during the ceremony.
"Early in the ceremony a loud tic in the form of a profoundly offensive term was heard by many people in the room. Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage at the time, and we apologise unreservedly to them, and to all those impacted. We would like to thank Michael and Delroy for their incredible dignity and professionalism.
"During the ceremony, John chose to leave the auditorium and watch the rest of the ceremony from a screen, and we would like to thank him for his dignity and consideration of others, on what should have been a night of celebration for him.
"We take full responsibility for putting our guests in a very difficult situation and we apologise to all. We will learn from this, and keep inclusion at the core of all we do, maintaining our belief in film and storytelling as a critical conduit for compassion and empathy."
Davidson, whose tics caused him to shout regularly throughout the evening before he eventually excused himself, has also issued a statement.
“I was in attendance to celebrate the film of my life, I Swear, which, more than any film or TV documentary, explains the origins, condition, traits, and manifestations of Tourette Syndrome,” his statement to Deadline read.
He went on: “I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette’s community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from others and I will continue to do so. I chose to leave the auditorium early into the ceremony as I was aware of the distress my tics were causing.”
Topics: Michael B Jordan
James Moorhouse