After a Tourette syndrome advocate shouted the N-word at “Sinners” actors Delroy Lindo and Michael B. Jordan during Sunday’s BAFTA Awards, Lindo said organizers of the event did not reach out that night about what happened. The organization later issued a public apology acknowledging the “harm” caused by the incident.
John Davidson, the inspiration for the BAFTA-nominated biopic “I Swear,” disrupted the ceremony with several involuntary outbursts of expletives and slurs, a symptom of the nervous system disorder.
According to Variety, audiences could hear someone yelling the N-word while Jordan and Lindo were onstage presenting the award for Best Visual Effects.
At other points during the show, the words “shut the fuck up” rang out during a speech from BAFTA Chair Sara Putt and a “fuck you” disrupted the Best Children’s and Family Film award winners’ acceptance speech.
The interruptions prompted an explanation and apology from host Alan Cumming, who told attendees, “Tourette’s syndrome is a disability, and the tics you’ve heard tonight are involuntary, which means the person who has Tourette’s syndrome has no control over their language. We apologize if you are offended tonight.”
