Tourette’s activist John Davidson shouts N-word during BAFTAs telecast

Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo had the N-word thrown at them while presenting an award at the BAFTA Awards 2026 on Sunday.

The “Sinners” stars were presenting the award for best visual effects to “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” when the shocking outburst could be heard by the audience from Tourette’s syndrome campaigner John Davidson.

Davidson is the inspiration for the BAFTA-nominated movie “I Swear,” which is based on his real life.

Jordan and Lindo continued presenting despite the awkward moment, and BAFTA Awards host Alan Cumming apologized afterwards.

“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,” Cumming told the audience, per Variety.

“Thanks for your understanding and helping create a respectful space for everyone.”

Cumming later addressed the incident further, noting, “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.”

Davidson’s tics could also be heard when he told BAFTA chair Sara Putt to “shut the f–k up” during her introductory speech, and when he shouted “f–k you” at the directors of “Boong,” when they accepted the award for for best children’s and family film.

Davidson appeared to have voluntarily left the awards show during the second half of the ceremony, Variety reported.

He was an “invited guest” and under no circumstances would BAFTA ask him to leave the ceremony, a source told the outlet.

Tourette syndrome is a disorder that involves repetitive movements or unwanted sounds (tics) that can’t be easily controlled, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Tics — “sudden, brief, intermittent movements or sounds” — are a major symptom of Tourette syndrome.

Davidson was the subject of the 1989 BBC documentary, “John’s Not Mad,”when he was 16 years old. The documentary followed his life dealing with severe Tourette’s syndrome.

He is known as an ambassador for the condition, giving talks and workshops about Tourette’s syndrome, for which there is no cure.