BAFTA Suspends Bryan Singer’s Nomination For ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ In Oustanding British Film Category
With just a few days to go before the British Academy of Film and Television Arts hands out the BAFTA Film Awards on Sunday, the organization says it has suspended Bryan Singer’s nomination for Bohemian Rhapsody in the Outstanding British Film Category. The film remains in that race, however, and the other people nominated on its behalf — Graham King and Anthony McCarten — are also still eligible.
The suspension is “in light of recent very serious allegations” against Singer, BAFTA said in a statement this evening (see it in full below). A 20th Century Fox spokesperson on Wednesday said “we fully support BAFTA’s decision.”
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In late January, Singer was hit with new claims of sex with underage boys in an exposé by The Atlantic. After the report, Singer called the article “a homophobic smear piece” that was “conveniently timed to take advantage” of Bohemian Rhapsody’s success. In the wake of the report, GLAAD disqualified the film from its Media Awards nominations.
BAFTA said today that it considers the alleged behavior “completely unacceptable and incompatible with its values,” but notes Singer’s denial of the allegations. “The suspension of his nomination will therefore remain in place until the outcome of the allegations has been resolved.”
Singer, who was fired from Bohemian Rhapsody in December 2017, has not been part of the marketing or press for the film during its stunning theatrical release ($833M WW) and awards run. What little promotion he had done had been on his Instagram account, and the pic’s entire team, including producer King and star Rami Malek, have distanced themselves from the filmmaker during the movie’s ascent this awards season which includes Golden Globe Best Picture Drama and Actor wins, seven BAFTA nominations and five Oscar noms including Best Picture and Actor.
Here is BAFTA’s statement in full:
In light of recent very serious allegations, BAFTA has informed Bryan Singer that his nomination for Bohemian Rhapsody has been suspended, effective immediately.
BAFTA considers the alleged behaviour completely unacceptable and incompatible with its values. This has led to Mr Singer’s suspended nomination. BAFTA notes Mr Singer’s denial of the allegations. The suspension of his nomination will therefore remain in place until the outcome of the allegations has been resolved.
For the avoidance of doubt, Bohemian Rhapsody remains nominated in the Outstanding British Film category, and the other individuals named as candidates in respect of the film remain nominees.
BAFTA believes everyone has the right to a fulfilling career in a safe, professional working environment, and it will continue to collaborate with the film, games and television industries to achieve this.
BAFTA will make no further statement on this matter during the period of suspension.
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