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.”

But according to Lindo, people behind the BAFTAs did not immediately offer either him or his co-star Jordan the same courtesy on the night of the event.

While speaking to Vanity Fair at a Warner Bros. afterparty, the Oscar nominee said he and Jordan “did what we had to do” but that he wished “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterwards.”

On Monday morning, BAFTA released a public statement that said, “Our guests heard very offensive language that carries incomparable trauma and pain for so many. We want to acknowledge the harm this has caused, address what happened and apologize to all.”

Officials did initially apologize to people who heard the slur during the BBC One broadcast of the event, which aired two hours after, in which the moment was not censored or edited out. The broadcast did, however, omit director Akinola Davies Jr.’s call to “Free Palestine” during his speech for outstanding British debut, according to Deadline.

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.

In an X post, “Sinners” production designer Hannah Beachler said Davidson’s outburst during Best Visual Effects was one of three instances that she heard the N-word that evening, though she acknowledged the situation put everyone involved in an “impossible” position.

“I keep trying to write about what happened at the BAFTAs, and I can’t find the words,” her post read. “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.”

“And a third time at a Black woman. I understand and deeply know why this is an impossible situation,” Beachler went on. “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.”

“Of course, we were offended ... but our frequency, our spiritual vibration is tuned to a higher level than what happened. I am not steel; this did not bounce off of me, but I exist above it. It can’t take away from who I am as an artist.”

By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.