BAFTA Producer respond to twitter criticism of Ariana DeBose’s opening number

• The awards show’s producer claimed that on Sunday, audience members cheered for her opening act.
• Nick Bullen told Variety, “I think it’s really unjust, to be honest.”
• “DeBose previously responded to online trolls after hosting Saturday Night Live last year.

Following her performance at the 2023 BAFTA Awards, Ariana DeBose received criticism on social media; nevertheless, the awards show’s producer claimed that on Sunday, audience members cheered for her opening act.

About the musical performance, producer Nick Bullen told Variety, “I think it’s really unjust, to be honest.” Along with singing “Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves” and “We Are Family” and rapping on the night’s female candidates, the 32-year-old Oscar winner performed alongside a troupe of dancers.

He told the publication, “The songs she was singing are extremely familiar tunes, and the room was clapping, and people were sort of dancing to the music.” We wanted to highlight the outstanding year for women in film, so we included a rap piece in the middle that mentioned the female attendees.

DeBose rapped as the camera panned to audience members with a variety of faces during the song, which followed host Richard E. Grant’s introductory monologue: “Angela Bassett did the thing, Viola Davis my ‘Woman King,’ Blanchett Cate you’re a genius, Jamie Lee you are all of us.”

The West Side Story performer “worked with a brilliant musical director and choreographer,” according to Bullen, who also believes that there were conflicting opinions since “a lot of people don’t like change.”

According to Bullen, “there’s a sense that the BAFTAs must be this little stiff, conventional British, middle-England messaging,” noting that “American award shows have considerably more razzmatazz, much more entertainment, and potentially a wider range of people being engaged.”

He went on: “We believed that our focus is on progress rather than revolution. Let’s just advance, let’s just make a few minor adjustments that begin to outline what this show ought to be and where we ought to be with it.”

DeBose previously responded to online trolls after hosting Saturday Night Live last year, despite the fact that she hasn’t commented on the criticism that followed Sunday’s awards show and her Twitter account appears to be inactive.

When a commenter mentioned that DeBose unintentionally said the wrong year during her opening monologue, the Hamilton actress replied, “You try hosting SNL, reading cue cards with little dyslexia and then get back to me, brah.”

“The Instagram user said, “Maybe get someone who isn’t on par with Joe Biden at reading since that’s a requirement for acting… reading lines. DeBose responded, “Nice. A troll, you are. Bye.”

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