The controversy surrounding Tourette’s syndrome campaigner John Davidson’s involuntary outbursts at Sunday’s BAFTA Film Awards has expanded beyond the initial incident involving Sinners stars Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo.
Hannah Beachler, the Oscar-winning production designer who became the first African American to win an Academy Award for Production Design in 2018 for Black Panther, revealed that Davidson also directed the racial slur at her during the ceremony. Hannah Beachler, the Oscar-winning production designer who became the first African American to win an Academy Award for Production Design in 2018 for Black Panther, revealed that Davidson also directed the racial slur at her during the ceremony.
The incident has drawn criticism from multiple entertainment industry figures, including Jamie Foxx, who called Davidson’s outbursts “unacceptable” despite acknowledging the neurological nature of Tourette’s syndrome. Wendell Pierce echoed similar sentiments, arguing that direct apologies to Jordan and Lindo should have taken priority over explanations about the medical condition.
Davidson attended the ceremony as the subject of the nominated film I Swear, which chronicles his life story and struggle with Tourette’s syndrome. The biographical drama stars Robert Aramayo as Davidson and depicts his younger years in Glasgow when he first received his diagnosis at age 15.
Tourette syndrome, a neurodevelopment disorder, is characterized by sudden, involuntary movements or sounds called tics that tend to wax and wane but can worsen with excitement or anxiety, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health. They may appear to be purposeful but are not, and the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke’s Tourette information page says people trying to suppress them often report a buildup of tension before a tic erupts.
The Tourette Association of America says about 10-15% of people with the syndrome experience a kind of vocal tic called coprolalia — involuntary swearing, slurs or other socially unacceptable words or phrases. Several shouts were audible during the first part of the ceremony, although what was said wasn’t intelligible to an Associated Press reporter in the press room. After the slur was shouted during Jordan and Lindo’s presentation, Cumming apologized to the audience at London’s Royal Festival Hall for the “strong and offensive language.”
The epithet could be heard when the BBC broadcast the ceremony about two hours after the live event. The broadcaster apologized for not editing it out before the broadcast, though the offensive word could still be heard on its iPlayer streaming service on Monday morning. The program was later removed, and the BBC said the slur would be edited out.