Delroy Lindo Makes First Comments About John Davidson's Racial Slur Outburst at BAFTAs 2026

John Davidson, a Tourette’s syndrome campaigner who inspired the BAFTA-winning movie, I Swear, is making headlines after what happened at the 2026 BAFTAs.

Several outbursts could be heard throughout the BAFTA ceremony, including “shut the f–k up” during an introductory speech from BAFTA chair Sara Putt, and “f–k you” during the Best Children’s and Family Film acceptance speech.

The audience also heard him shout a racial slur when Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented the award for Best Visual Effects to Avatar: Fire and Ash.

Now, Delroy has made his first comments on what went down.

Keep reading to find out more…

Delroy told Vanity Fair at an after party that he and Michael “did what we had to do” in the moment, but he wishes that “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterwards.”

Alan Cumming, the show’s host, said after the moment, “You may have noticed some strong language in the background. 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.”

He later added, “Tourette’s Syndrome is a disability and the tics you’ve heard tonight are involuntary, which means the person who has Tourette’s Syndrome has no control over their language. We apologize if you are offended tonight.”

The BBC added in a statement, “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.”