John Davidson BAFTA plan: 7 major nods after painful scandal
John Davidson BAFTA plans are now set: The Tourette syndrome campaigner will attend the BAFTA Scotland Awards on Nov. 15 in Glasgow, but he will watch the ceremony by video link from a separate, relaxed room inside the venue with his family and friends. BAFTA chair Sara Putt and CEO Jane Millichip outlined the arrangement in a letter to members Oct. 1, Variety reported.
The plan comes seven months after Davidson involuntarily shouted the N-word at the BAFTA Film Awards on Feb. 22. The outburst came as Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo stood onstage to present the night’s first award, and it dominated coverage of the ceremony.
How the John Davidson BAFTA plan will work
BAFTA said it consulted Tourettes Action, Tourette Scotland and Davidson before settling on the setup. The academy said the John Davidson BAFTA format is the one Davidson himself proposed.
“Following those conversations and our wider risk assessment, we have made adjustments to enable John to attend in the way he has suggested to us, which is to watch the ceremony via video link from a separate relaxed space within the venue together with his family and friends,” the letter said.
The letter explained that Davidson has coprolalia, a vocal tic that causes involuntary socially inappropriate words or phrases. It said such tics are neurological and do not reflect a person’s views, but that tics involving race or other protected characteristics can still cause harm to others, and BAFTA has a duty to plan for that.
‘I Swear’ leads with 7 BAFTA Scotland nominations
“I Swear,” the film based on Davidson’s life, picked up seven BAFTA Scotland nominations, believed to be the most for any title in the awards’ history, according to Variety. Davidson, who holds an MBE, is also an executive producer on the film.
What BAFTA’s review found
BAFTA ordered an independent review after the February ceremony, the incident that set the John Davidson BAFTA debate in motion. It found “a number of structural weaknesses in BAFTA’s planning, escalation procedures and crisis coordination arrangements,” but no evidence of “malicious intent” or “institutional racism,” Variety reported.
In the letter, Putt and Millichip said the academy has since centralized its safeguarding and risk-assessment work, simplified how concerns are escalated and expanded briefings for hosts, presenters and citation readers. They also said BAFTA is developing more staff training on race, disability and inclusion.
“We recognise that rebuilding trust requires more than changing processes,” the letter said.
What’s next for the John Davidson BAFTA appearance
The BAFTA Cymru Awards come first, on Sunday, Oct. 4. The BAFTA Scotland ceremony follows Nov. 15 in Glasgow, where “I Swear” will compete with Davidson watching from his separate space.
For more awards coverage, see our look at the 2026 Oscars best picture winner, the best overlooked indie films of 2025 and the latest in our movies section.