Delroy Lindo has revealed what went through his mind in the split second after a racial slur was shouted at him on stage at the BAFTA Film Awards, and it turns out his first instinct was simple.
The Sinners star, 73, appeared on NPR’s Fresh Air on Thursday, 5th March, where he opened up about the moment John Davidson, 54, a Tourette syndrome advocate, involuntarily yelled the n-word while Lindo and co-star Michael B. Jordan were presenting an award at the ceremony on 22nd February.
Lindo was mindful, and, at first, reluctant. When Mosley introduced the topic, he pushed back with a laugh.
“Can I stop you for one second? With all due respect,” he said. “With all due respect, I’m actually not going to talk about this. I’m laughing because in the intro when you said, ‘Oh, yes, we’ll be talking about what happened with BAFTA,’ I chuckled because I said, ‘No, we’re not.'”
He did, however, go on to describe what happened internally in that moment, and the picture he painted was one of extraordinary composure under pressure.
“You have to understand, we had jobs to do. We were the first presenters of the evening,” he explained.
“And we had to read that teleprompter, and we both did exactly that. Now, a couple of people who know, my wife says that I adjusted my glasses, and she said she knew when I adjusted my glasses that something was happening internally. But there was a nanosecond when I’m thinking, ‘Wait, did I just hear what I thought I heard?'”
He added: “But then, and it truly was a nanosecond, one had to read the teleprompter and get on with presenting the award. So, you know, there was no time at all. I processed in the way that I processed in a nanosecond, Mike did similarly, and we went on and did our jobs.”
Davidson had been invited to the ceremony as a representative of the film I Swear, which is based on his own life and experiences with Tourette syndrome.
The film won BAFTAs for Best Leading Actor and Best Casting. In a Facebook post on 1st March, Davidson addressed the fallout.
“Whilst I will never apologise for having Tourette syndrome, I will apologise for any pain, upset and misunderstanding that it may create,” he wrote, adding that the experience had reminded him how much work remains in raising awareness for “such a misunderstood condition.”
BAFTA formally apologised to both Lindo and Jordan on 23rd February, after the BBC broadcast the incident without editing it out.
Lindo had previously spoken briefly about the episode at the NAACP Image Awards on 28th February, where he thanked those who had shown support in the aftermath.
