How Ariana DeBose Really Feels About Her Viral BAFTAs Performance

The Oscar winner finally broke her silence after a series of memes inspired by her recent performance went viral.

After her show-stopping BAFTAs performance that spawned a fleet of memes and hot takes, Ariana DeBose remained quiet about it. Well, until now.

The 32-year-old Oscar winner finally responded to the viral reactions inspired by her recent rap–which shouted out the likes of Angela Bassett, Viola Davis, Cate Blanchett and Jamie Lee Curtis–with just a few words.

"Honestly I love this," DeBose wrote on entertainment personality Evan Ross Katz's recent take on the headline-making award show moment.

In case you missed it, DeBose opened the 2023 BAFTA Awards Show with an original song and choreographed performance that included lines like: "Angela Bassett did the thing," “Viola Davis, my Woman King,” and "Jamie Lee you are all of us!"

Well, the internet had a field day with it, and social media users have since quoted what some critics called the "cringe-worthy" performance in memes–specifically, the part about Bassett.

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The creative use of DeBose's lyrics can be found across almost all social media platforms, including Ross Katz's Instagram, which featured a photo of a grandmother recalling, “Angela Bassett did the thing.” A granddaughter then responded, “Sure, Grandma, let’s get you to bed.”

Another meme featured Bassett and Davis embracing, with the following made-up conversation: "you did the thing," "my woman my king."

It was on this post that DeBose, who deactivated her Twitter account amid the headlines, commented her praise.

While most of the memes poking fun at the multi-talented artists seem to be in good fun, the performance was initially met with a bit of backlash from viewers, who said it was "painful" to watch.

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One of the producers backstage spoke to Variety about the criticism of Sunday night's award show calling it "incredibly unfair."

“We wanted to open the show with some energy, some fun, and also lay out straight away that this was hopefully going to feel like a different night, but with a familiarity as well, and what Ariana did was exactly that,” BAFTA Awards producer Nick Bullen explained.

“I think a lot of people don’t like change, and there’s a view that the BAFTAs have to be this slightly stiff, traditional British, middle-England messaging. But American awards shows have much more razzmatazz, much more showbiz, and perhaps a broader range of people being involved. We felt we’re not about revolution, we’re about evolution.”

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Aside from her Instagram comment, DeBose hasn't made a formal statement regarding viewers' reactions to her rap. Immediately, following her performance, however, she seemed pleased and told the show's co-host Alison Hammond that she “made the British people clap.”