NBC’s Saturday Night Live is facing backlash for what social media users call a “disgusting” and “shameful” sketch that featured comedians playing celebrities justifying their past scandals by blaming them on Tourette syndrome — in reference to the racial slur controversy at the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) last week.
“Hi, I’m Mel Gibson, and as I probably should have pointed out decades ago, I, too, suffer from Tourette’s, which explains a lot of the things I’ve said or yelled through the years,” comedian Andrew Dismukes said, mocking the BAFTA slur incident.
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As the SNL sketch continued, the celebrities’ scandals became increasingly ridiculous, with comedian Connor Storrie — who portrayed actor Armie Hammer — saying, “Not many people know this, but one of the most common side effects of Tourette’s is cannibalism.”
“I got like 50 different types of Tourette’s,” a third actor playing Kanye West explained.
Notably, the sketch poked fun at John Davidson — a Scottish man who inspired the BAFTA-nominated biopic I Swear, a film about struggling with alienation from his peers after being diagnosed with Tourette’s syndrome at a young age — who involuntarily shouted the N-word at the awards ceremony, sparking outrage among those who are not familiar with the condition.
Social media users took to the comment section of Saturday Night Live‘s X post sharing the clip to lambast the sketch.
“Genuinely shameful. The joke is basically nothing more sophisticated than ‘people with serious disabilities make it up.’ That’s before they compare a disabled man, mocked his entire life, to Bill Cosby. Whole thing deserves to become infamous,” journalist Lewis Goodall said.
“This is honestly gross and punching down in the worst possible way. And ironically, it proves the necessity for the work people like John Davidson do to erase stigma around Tourette’s,” The Independent Washington Bureau Chief Eric Michael Garcia wrote.
“This is genuinely actually one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen,” a third X user declared. “A disabled man mocked on prime time American TV, insinuating that Tourette’s actually is voluntary. Everyone in this sketch should feel ashamed.”
“The joke here appears to be ‘people with disabilities are faking it,’” another commented.
“Look forward to seeing a skit implying people in wheelchairs are just pretending they can’t walk, next week on SNL,” another X user said, adding, “What a fucking horrendous shit show of a skit, everyone involved in putting this on air should be ashamed.”
Saturday Night Live‘s X post was also slapped with a community note explaining Tourette syndrome.
“Tourette Syndrome is a neurological condition that causes the sufferer to tic uncontrollably. Tics can include sudden physical movement or even offensive words and sounds. These are not able to be controlled and do not reflect the sufferers beliefs or feelings,” the note read.
Davidson, who reportedly excused himself from the BAFTAs after his outburst, released a statement on Sunday saying that while he would not apologize for having Tourette syndrome, he was sorry for the “pain, upset, and misunderstanding that it may create.”
“I’ve been waiting all week until the dust settles after the weekend at the BAFTAs in London,” Davidson said in a Sunday Facebook post.
“I would like to thank each and every one of you who have shown love, support and solidarity towards myself and the rest of the Tourette’s Community,” he continued.
“Your kind words and support have got me through a very difficult week,” Davidson added. “Whilst I will never apologies for having Tourette syndrome, I will apologize for any pain, upset, and misunderstanding that it may create.”
Davidson concluded, writing, “This past week has been tough, and has reminded me that what I do raising awareness for such a misunderstood condition, there is still a long way to go and I will keep on keeping on until this is achieved.”
Alana Mastrangelo is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
