BAFTA drops special awards for 2022 after Noel Clarke sexual misconduct allegations
Posted On
BAFTA has announced there will be no special awards at this year’s film or games ceremonies.
Last year, Noel Clarke was awarded the Outstanding Contribution to Cinema prize at the BAFTA Film Awards. Following the ceremony, a report was published in The Guardian which saw 20 women accuse Clarke of sexual harassment and misconduct.
The actor, who denied the claims, was suspended by BAFTA following the allegations. The organisation, however, faced scrutiny after the original report claimed BAFTA had been aware of the allegations before it handed Clarke the award.
The awards body stated it had received “anonymous emails and reports of allegations via intermediaries”, but said “no evidence was provided” that would enable an investigation to take place.
After launching a review into the processes governing the awards last year, involving “extensive industry consultations”, BAFTA announced there’ll be no special recognition awards at the film and game awards in 2022 to allow enough time to implement changes on how recipients are chosen. These changes however will be in place for the TV awards in May.
A statement from BAFTA reads: “[A recent review] concluded that these awards remain a vital way to celebrate excellence and inspire future generations of talent across film, games and television and we look forward to honouring exceptional contributions to these industries in the future.
“Due to the time needed to properly implement the recommendations of this review, these non-competitive awards, including the Fellowship, will not be part of this year’s film awards or games awards ceremonies in 2022, but we intend to present special awards at our television awards ceremony in May.”
These changes include the introduction of a new committee to expand the “vetting and selection processes”, while members will be urged to be more involved in suggesting candidates for special award consideration.
Rebel Wilson is set to host this year’s BAFTA Film Awards at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday, March 13. The nominations will be announced on February 3.
