The BAFTA Awards 2026 were meant to celebrate cinematic brilliance, but Tourette’s activist John Davidson became the center of controversy after shouting the N word during a live telecast.
The incident occurred as Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented the award for Best Visual Effects to Avatar: Fire and Ash.
Davidson’s involuntary outbursts, linked to Tourette’s syndrome and coprolalia, shocked audiences and quickly ignited a firestorm online.
Social media platforms erupted with calls for accountability.
One user on X wrote, “Tourettes or not, it always falls on Black people to be the bigger person. Michael & Delroy deserve an apology from BAFTAs and John Davidson.”
Another added, “Two things can be true: Davidson’s condition is unfortunate, but being called that in front of peers is unacceptable. They deserve a public apology.”
Others echoed the sentiment, insisting that Davidson’s apology should be “as loud as his interruption.”
BAFTAs host Alan Cumming addressed the audience, clarifying that Davidson’s tics were involuntary and part of Tourette’s syndrome.
While acknowledging the medical context, many viewers argued that the impact of the slur on Jordan and Lindo cannot be dismissed.
As the BAFTA buzz continues, the question remains: will John Davidson issue the apology netizens are demanding, or will silence deepen the controversy?
