Sinners producer says BAFTA British Tourette actor also hurled n-word at her after he shouted it at stars Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo
A black Oscar-winning production designer says Tourette campaigner John Davidson called her the n-word at Sunday’s BAFTA awards where he hurled the same slur at actors Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo.
Hannah Beachler, who became the first African American to win an Academy Award for Production Design in 2018 for Black Panther, took to X after Davidson’s involuntary outbursts made headlines on Sunday.
He could be heard shouting the n-word at Jordan and Lindo while the two Sinners actors were on stage in London Sunday night, with microphones picking up the racist term.
Beachler wrote on X: ‘I keep trying to write about what happened at the BAFTAs, and I can’t find the words.
‘The situation is almost impossible, but it happened 3 times that night, and one of the three times was directed at myself on the way to dinner after the show.’
Beachler said the other person Davidson shouted at was also a black woman, and although she acknowledged it as an ‘impossible situation’, she criticized the apology from awards host Alan Cumming.
‘I know we must handle this with grace and continue to push through. But what made the situation worse was the throw away apology of ‘if you were offended’ at the end of the show,’ she said.
‘Of course we were offended… but our frequency, our spiritual vibration is tuned to a higher level than what happened. I am not steal, this did not bounce off of me, but I exist above it. It can’t take away from who I am as an artist.’
Oscar-winning production designer Hannah Beachler says Torettes campaigner John Davidson also hurled the N-word at her during the BAFTA awards as she criticized the show’s handling of the situation
Tourette campaigner John Davidson involuntarily shouted the N-word at the BAFTA Awards on Sunday night
It comes as a clip of Davidson involuntarily shouting the N-word at Jordan and Lindo went viral on social media, with Cumming going on to thank the audience ‘for their understanding’ over the Tourette sufferers condition.
Davidson was at the awards show as he is the subject one of the nominated movies, I Swear, which details the life of the campaigner who was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome at a time when little was known about the condition.
He appeared to have left the ceremony in the second half of the show as his outbursts could no longer be heard.
According to Variety, John left of his own accord and was not asked to leave by BAFTA. A source told the publication that he was an ‘invited guest’ and under no circumstances would he be asked to leave the ceremony.
While Jordan and Lindo didn’t react to the remark, Alan Cumming later addressed the audience at London’s Royal Festival Hall and apologised for the offensive language.
Addressing the outbursts, Alan told the crowd: ‘You may have heard some strong offensive language tonight, but if you’ve seen the film I Swear, it’s about the experience of a person with Tourette syndrome.
‘It is a disability and the ticks you have heard tonight are involuntary that means the person who has Tourette syndrome has no control over their language and we apologize if it has caused offence.’
Beachler became the first African American to win an Academy Award for Production Design in 2018 for Black Panther
BAFTA host Alan Cumming thanked audience for Tourette’s understanding as I Swear’s John Davidson let out involuntary shouts during Sunday’s ceremony
Davidson appeared to leave the show in the second half, but organizers said he was not asked to leave.The campaigner is pictured with the mum of his friend Dottie Achenbach, who helped raise him
I Swear stars Robert Aramayo (pictured in the film) as the campaigner and depicts his younger years living in Glasgow, when he was first diagnosed with Tourette’s
The neurological condition, characterized by a combination of involuntary noises and movements called tics, affects roughly one in 100 children, according to NHS England.
Davidson was previously awarded an MBE for his tirelessly work over the years to heighten awareness of the condition.
Recalling the ‘proudest’ moment of his life when he was handed his MBE, John revealed that on the day, aside from swearing at the Queen, he experienced a compulsion to tell police officers at Holyrood Palace that he had ‘a f***ing bomb!’ as they routinely checked his vehicle.
The movie based on his life, I Swear, stars Robert Aramayo as the campaigner and depicts his younger years living in Glasgow, when he was first diagnosed with Tourette syndrome.
The film was nominated in the Outstanding British Film category, but lost out to Hamnet.
However, Aramayo bagged the award for Lead Actor, beating front-runners Leonardo DiCaprio and Timothee Chalamet who were also up for the award.
He also won the EE Rising Star Award, the only public-voted accolade of the night.