Alan Cumming Blasts BAFTA Over John Davidson's 2 Slurs, Says He Won't Host Again
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · May 11
Alan Cumming Blasts BAFTA Over John Davidson's 2 Slurs, Says He Won't Host Again
6 articles · Updated · The Guardian · May 11
Alan Cumming said BAFTA showed “bad, bad” leadership at February’s film awards, accusing organizers of failing to prepare for John Davidson’s on-air outburst and warning neither him nor the audience.
Davidson shouted the N-word twice and also directed a slur at Cumming during the ceremony, which the BBC carried live and left on iPlayer overnight before removing it.
Cumming said BAFTA had told him only that there “would be noise,” despite Davidson reportedly using the N-word at a party the day before; he said he could not clearly hear events through his earpiece.
BAFTA and the BBC later apologized, but an independent review in April said it found no evidence of malicious intent by those delivering the event.
Cumming called the episode an “international scandal” and said he has no plans to host the BAFTAs again.
Was the BAFTA racial slur incident an unavoidable accident of inclusion or a catastrophic failure by its organizers?
The BBC aired a racial slur but cut other speeches. What does this selective editing reveal about their priorities?