Jamie Foxx and Wendell Pierce Condemn BAFTA Racial Slur Incident Targeting Michael B. Jordan: ‘Unacceptable’
Jamie Foxx and Wendell Pierce are condemning the BAFTA Awards after an audience member directed a racial slur at Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo during the broadcast.
John Davidson, 54 — who first began experiencing symptoms of Tourette’s syndrome, which causes involuntary verbal and physical tics, at age 12 — attended the awards ceremony in London on Sunday, Feb. 22 in support of the award-winning film I Swear, based on his own life and experiences with the condition. He shouted the n-word as Jordan, 39, and Lindo, 73, presented the ceremony’s award for Best Visual Effects, as Variety reported, among several outbursts heard from the audience throughout the ceremony.
“It’s infuriating that the first reaction wasn’t complete and full throated apologies to Delroy Lindo and Michael B. Jordan,” Pierce, 62, wrote on X late on Feb. 22, in response to a post from journalist Jemele Hill, who opined about BAFTAs host Alan Cumming’s comments to the audience following the outburst.
“The insult to them takes priority. It doesn’t matter the reasoning for the racist slur,” Pierce added in his X post.
Foxx, 58, also criticized the moment on social media, commenting on an Instagram post featuring a clip of the incident, “Nah, he meant that s–t,” adding, “Unacceptable.”
Sinners’ production designer Hannah Beachler also commented on the moment on X, writing, “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.”
After Davidson shouted the racial slur, Cumming addressed the audience, noting that I Swear addressed the type of involuntary outbursts that audience members heard.
“You may have noticed some strong language in the background,” Cumming said, per Variety. “This can be part of how Tourette’s syndrome shows up for some people, as the film explores that experience. Thanks for your understanding and helping create a respectful space for everyone.”
While speaking to Vanity Fair at a Warner Brothers’ afterparty, Lindo said that he and Jordan “did what we had to do” when they were on stage, but admitted he wished “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterwards.”
The BBC has since apologized after the moment was not edited out of the BBC One broadcast, which aired with a two-hour delay. It also remained on the broadcaster’s catch-up service, BBC iPlayer, on Monday morning before being removed.
In a statement to PEOPLE, the BBC said, “Some viewers may have heard strong and offensive language during the BAFTA Film Awards. This arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome, and as explained during the ceremony, it was not intentional. We [apologize] that this was not edited out prior to broadcast and it will now be removed from the version on BBC iPlayer.”
Reps for Jordan and Lindo didn’t immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for comment. PEOPLE has also reached out to BAFTA about Lindo’s comments to Vanity Fair.
