Delroy Lindo has explained that he didn’t fully process what happened at the BAFTA Awards last month when he was presenting an award on-stage with Michael B. Jordan.
John Davidson, the Tourette’s campaigner who is the subject of the film I Swear, was in attendance at the ceremony on February 22. At several points, the involuntary tics associated with his condition were loudly audible in the Royal Festival Hall, and on one occasion he was heard shouting the N-word while Lindo and Jordan were presenting the award for Best Visual Effects.
Davidson also said “shut the fuck up” during BAFTA chair Sara Putt’s speech, and “fuck you” to the directors of Best Children’s and Family Film winner Boong.
In the aftermath, Davidson – who later left the ceremony early – apologised, saying that he was “deeply mortified” and “can’t begin to explain how upset and distraught I have been.”
Sinners star Lindo has previously said that “we appreciate all the support and love that we have been shown,” while admitting he wished “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterward.”
And now, speaking to Tonya Mosley on NPR’s Fresh Air podcast, he said he didn’t process it at first. “You have to understand, we had jobs to do,” he told the journalist. “We were the first presenters of the evening, and we had to read that teleprompter … There was a nanosecond, a nano of a nano of a nanosecond, when I’m thinking: ‘Wait, did I just hear what I thought I heard?’
“But then, and it truly was a nanosecond, one had to read the teleprompter and get on with presenting the award.”
Lindo said he discussed the situation with Jordan, who he says had a “similar response”, adding: “And we went on and did our jobs.”
The BBC, which broadcast the ceremony on a two-hour tape delay, has been criticised for not editing the use of N-word out of the show. The BBC has since apologised, and it has been edited out of the version of the show that is streaming on BBC iPlayer.
In a statement to the House of Commons’ Culture, Media and Sport Committee, BBC director general Tim Davie said that the racial slur “should never have been broadcast” and stressed: “We understand the hurt and shock that the mistake caused.”
He explained that the evidence the BBC gathered indicated the reason it was left in was due to a similar slur shouted when Lindo and Jordan’s Sinners co-star Wunmi Mosaku received the Best Supporting Actress award.
Davie said that this slur was removed immediately, but that the edit team were unaware of the other – and so thought that the instructions to remove slurs had been adhered to. He also touched on the time it took to remove the broadcast from the iPlayer.
According to the director general, producers thought the slur was inaudible and it was only reinvestigated the following morning, with the BBC’s chief content officer Kate Phillips authorising the show’s removal from the streaming service just before noon.