‘I Swear’ Star Robert Aramayo on the BAFTA N-Word Incident That Overshadowed the Movie and the ‘X-Men’ Wolverine Pitch He Keeps Hearing

Robert Aramayo is kicking back, eating a doughnut.

A red box of SK’s Donuts sits open on the table between us, lid flipped back, “Best Donuts in Los Angeles, Est. 1989” stamped across the top.

I joke with Aramayo before the mics are hot: This is why I booked the interview. I wanted some free food. He laughs, tears off a piece of a glazed and settles in as we sit outdoors on Variety’s rooftop. He’s four days into a Los Angeles trip for meetings, the kind of week where you shake a lot of hands. Nobody tells you what they’re for, and he’s doing it as the reigning BAFTA best actor victor for a movie most of America hasn’t gotten around to yet.

“I Swear,” Kirk Jones’ biographical drama about Scottish Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson, opened in the U.K. last October. It rolled into the 79th BAFTA Film Awards with five nominations and, on Feb. 22, handed the 33-year-old from Hull, East Yorkshire, both the Rising Star Award and leading actor over Timothée Chalamet, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ethan Hawke, Michael B. Jordan and Jesse Plemons. Four of those men, save for Plemons, were nominated at the Oscars. Nobody had ever won both in the same night. Sony Pictures Classics didn’t open the film stateside until April 24, which makes it eligible for this year’s Oscar lineup, where Aramayo faces a barrage of new leading contenders such as Andrew Scott, John Malkovich, Pedro Pascal, Matt Damon and more.

And as more viewers continue to discover “I Swear,” Aramayo could be a viable (and worthy) dark horse entrant to the Oscar conversation.

That split calendar is one reason the film plays like a new movie on a second look. The other reason is what happened on the BAFTA night itself. The real-life Davidson, attending as an executive producer on the film, sat near a live microphone, a few seats behind Aramayo. His involuntary vocal tics, including a racial slur, shouted as Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented. They were heard on the broadcast, and BAFTA apologized to the presenters. Davidson, who left the ceremony on his own in the second half, told Variety afterward he felt “a wave of shame.”

And for weeks, the discourse swallowed the film whole.

Aramayo isn’t sitting here to relitigate the controversy. He’s here to talk about the man he spent three months with before cameras rolled and now counts him and his family as close friends. When the BAFTA envelope opened and his name was called, Davidson was the first face he saw backstage afterward. “He was waiting for me, and we had this massive hug,” Aramayo recalls.

“Tourette’s is funny until it’s not,” someone told him during his research, and he keeps circling back to it. Some tics make a room laugh. Some tics hurt. “All those responses are human responses,” he tells Variety. “But at the same time, I see John and his experience and I know how difficult it is for him.”

What he wanted from the performance, and what he credits Jones for protecting, is a story about a person and not his diagnosis. “This isn’t a story about Tourette’s. It’s a story about John and all of the given circumstances that surround John.”

Aramayo is candid about the fear, as well as the script that scared him. We chuckle that Robert Downey Jr.’s Sean Penn speech in “Tropic Thunder” (2008) has scarred actors forever when taking on a disabled character.

But he felt safe because of the charities attached, Tourette Scotland and Tourette’s Action, which made him feel safer. Of course, Davidson’s blessing made him feel honored. But the truth is, none of it made him feel calm. He describes the night of his win in fragments: a blur when the name was read, a staircase and no idea what he was going to say. “There are honestly moments between them and me walking off the stage that I don’t remember.”

Between bites, we get to the rest, sit back and talk about the movie itself and the legends that surround it: Peter Mullan, whom he films alongside and whom once greeted with an improvised line that resulted in a “Wow, OK, this is a lot.” A third season of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is coming, which he calls darker, with Sauron out in the open.

He talks about Paul Thomas Anderson, the director he most wants to work with, whom he’s met and would still be terrified to work with.

And, because I can’t help myself, I pitch that Marvel Studios should keep his number for the day Hugh Jackman decides to hang up the claws on Wolverine and bring a new one into the MCU, especially with a new “X-Men” film on the horizon.

He doesn’t say no.

The interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Where did you grow up, and how did you get into this crazy business?

I was always acting as a kid in Hull, in East Yorkshire, which is also where Tom Courtenay is from, so I’m very proud of that. I was part of Hull Truck Youth Theatre, which used to be a big touring company back in the day and has a really good youth theater. When I was 17, I decided I wanted to do something different. I didn’t want to go to a British drama school, so I applied to Juilliard and went there.

Do you get impostor syndrome? Has it sunk in that you’ve actually “made it?”

It’s not a conscious thing. It would be great if this industry worked like, you get this job, then you progress to that job and now you’re at that level. It just doesn’t work like that. In some ways, that’s brilliant, because you have to stay on your toes. I did my first play this year, and it was the most humbling experience. Theater training was all I did until I graduated, and then I just did film and TV. Being on the stage again, I was like, oh my word. Taking stuff for granted, thinking it’s going to be this way now, is so dangerous.

How did you hear about “I Swear,” and were you nervous to take it on?

The script and the story felt like a huge challenge. It was intimidating, and I was scared. But when I heard the movie was connected to Tourette Scotland and Tourettes Action, the big charities in the U.K., and that John was creating the story with Kirk, a lot of things made me feel better. It felt safe. But I was terrified.

Did you think this could be a career ender?

Did I consciously think that? No. Because very quickly, Kirk wanted to get me on a plane to Scotland to meet John and as soon as you sit down with that man, you’re like, “I’d just be honored to play him.” He was really passionate about it, and that helped.

How much did you know about Tourette’s before taking on the role, and what did you learn?

John is a good subject for a film about a person living with Tourette’s because when you see John’s tics, you think, “That’s what I understand Tourette’s to be.” But what I experienced in research was the social isolation of people whose tics aren’t as overt. There are tics you don’t see that you can’t recognize as a tic. And the chronic pain that goes along with repetitive motions can create big issues down the line. If somebody doesn’t understand what they’re seeing is Tourette’s, they think you’re just being weird. I met people who said part of them wishes they had coprolalia because it’s so identifiable as Tourette’s. And a tic coming out of a 12-year-old’s mouth versus a 55-year-old’s mouth, the same tic, is experienced differently by society. The education for me was enormous.

The scene where John puts on the device for the first time, walks into the library and comes back and asks, “Can I keep it?” On my second viewing, I felt the ache of seeing someone wanting to be seen as “normal” but also wrestling with betraying who you are. Did you see it like that?

I think it’s a natural response. The dialogue around the band is really interesting, and the way John feels about it is complex because it becomes part of who you are. It’s part of your identity. His first impulse would be, “Can I keep it? Can I always wear it?” But in time, he might find, “Is it another form of suppression? Is there a cost to that?” How people feel about it is their own. Somebody said something to me about Tourette’s that really resonates: “If you’ve met one person with Tourette’s, you’ve met one person with Tourette’s.”

My son has autism. When he was diagnosed, people unfamiliar with it would sometimes ask, from a place of love, “Is there a cure?” I’ve also been asked whether, if there were a cure, I’d want it for my son. I feel like that’s the same as asking if I want a different kid. I wonder if John feels the same way about himself. If you take Tourette’s away, John is still John, but you’re also taking away something that helped make him who he is.

It comes back to the film’s messaging. One of the first things I thought was, “This is a story about John Davidson’s life. This isn’t a story about Tourette’s. It’s a story about John and the circumstances surrounding him, the choices he makes and his wants and desires.” That’s why I like that the story is, in parts, very simple. We’re going in for a job interview; we all want the job. John wants to get the job. He’s got his own circumstances that are part of his life. That speaks to Kirk’s vision. He wanted an element of just someone living a life. If you spend time with people with Tourette’s, sometimes that is the event. Going to a fast-food restaurant and ordering quickly is easy for us. It’s not always the case.

What do you want people to know about the film that gets lost in translation, especially after BAFTA?

I hope people experience John’s story and then go and Google what Tourette’s is. The Tourette Association of America told me that one in 50 kids in America live with a persistent tic disorder, and one in 160 are living with Tourette’s. So it’s in schools. You can’t avoid it. Watch the documentaries about John; they’re fascinating. And maybe Google the TAA.

You spent three months with John before shooting. What was the first thing he said to you after you won the BAFTA?

He was there. The first person I saw was John. He was waiting for me, and we had this massive hug. He couldn’t believe it. Unbelievably supportive. I’m very close with him now and the whole family. I feel very lucky to have them in my life.

You were a BAFTA winner before the movie had even opened in the U.S. When they said your name, what went through your head?

It was massive. I’d just won the Rising Star Award, which I couldn’t believe and they had to take me from that and back to my seat. I was thinking, I’m going to have to do all this press now; I hope I say the right thing. I was not thinking at all about the other one. I thought I was sat there as a formality. Then when they said my name, I still can’t believe it. Total shock. Honestly, there are moments between then and walking off the stage that I don’t remember. I remember a blur when she read my name out, and then all of a sudden I was running down some stairs, with little fragments of thought: What the hell am I going to say?

Did you ever dream about winning an award as prestigious as BAFTA?

No. I really didn’t, because I remember growing up in Hull and seeing them on TV and thinking, wow, this is so special. And then all of a sudden you’re sat there with one. Unbelievable, and a really weird experience. Especially awards you’ve known about since you were little. It does weird things to your mind.

I wrote extensively about that night, trying to offer a perspective on both experiences in the room — from a father who has a son with a disability and a person of color who endures hurtful language. I also interviewed John Davidson himself. Were you disappointed that the media coverage afterward took away from what John set out to do?

I love the piece you wrote because it speaks to both experiences, and that’s really important. If John were here now, he might hit you [physically]. That will hurt you. It will also hurt John because he’s hit you. So I think what the film is trying to do — spreading awareness and education — is important. But the actual fallout and the people who were affected, it’s really unfortunate. It’s not a very nice moment. Somebody once told me, “Tourette’s is funny until it’s not.” That’s key.

There were a lot of tics that night, and some made people laugh, which is a natural response. Other tics, we know the story. Another thing people always say is, “Ignore the tics but not the person.” With John, I’ll always just let it go, let it go, let it go, whatever it is. Sometimes you can’t help but get hurt if he hits you or if the tic is hurtful verbally. Or it might even make you laugh.

All of those are human responses. At the same time, I see John’s experience and I know how difficult it is for him.

You were sitting a few rows from him. Did you want to run over and give him a hug?

Of course. I’m really close with John. At a certain point, John was just gone and I was just worried about him.

I read that you improvised a line to Peter Mullan that caught him off guard. How did you have that freedom?

They always encouraged every take to be different. That tic only happened once in that take, and a lot of that was going on with other actors too. Kirk is a really collaborative, open director who wants you to come with offerings. But I remember Pete being like, “Wow, OK, this is a lot.” I love Pete. He’s absolutely phenomenal. He loves the work and doesn’t take it too seriously, but once he’s in it, there’s no one you’d rather be in it with. I remember auditioning for a film years ago just because Pete was in it. What he’s done in his career is stunning.

You and Mullan are both in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” Was “I Swear” easy because you already knew each other?

Not at all. I think I did one scene with him in Season 1. I was standing on a table; he was on a stool, and at some points, you’re not allowed to look each other in the eye. In this, we could properly work. Whether it’s loads of prosthetics and wigs or two people in a room, it’s the same job. That’s why he’s the best.

Do people stop you in airports and say “Elrond?” And what can you share about the next season of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power?”

People do ask me about Elrond. It happens in airports as well; that’s the thing. I think it’s a darker season. Sauron’s out in the open, doing his thing. There’s paranoia in Middle-earth. And it was actually the shortest shoot so far.

What’s your favorite movie of all time, or the one that made you fall in love with movies?

“The Fellowship of the Ring” was a big thing when I was a kid. The epic adventure of it. It’s still my favorite of those films. But I also watched “There Will Be Blood” when I was quite young.

Who’s the director you want to work with the most?

PTA.

What’s your favorite Paul Thomas Anderson movie?

Probably that, but I think “Punch-Drunk Love” is incredible. The score is fantastic. I’ve met him a few times, and I told him I’m obsessed. I don’t even know if I’d want to work with him because I’d be scared of letting him down. Every one of his films seems to have its own musicality. I don’t know how you create such eclectic films without giving in to the rhythm.

Do you worry about the business right now? AI, mergers, all of it.

I get scared. I’m constantly scared. But not in the classic sense of, “I don’t know if I’m ever going to get another job.” The ability to keep doing it is the biggest gift ever. Longevity. You look at actors who’ve been doing it so long, and the biggest gift is that they’ve been able to keep acting. So I worry about that. It’s a scary landscape all the time. I get quite overwhelmed.

What’s a role you’d most want to play if it got made, and would you ever consider doing a superhero movie?

Why don’t you answer the superhero part for me, and I’ll do the first part.

I mean … They’re building the “X-Men” universe. At some point, as talented as he is, Hugh Jackman can’t play that role forever. So when that Wolverine casting comes up, and I saw you walked in today, with the hair pretty grown out and big — I think I can see it.

I can’t even imagine. But you know what? You’re not the first person who’s said it, though.

How good is your American accent?

Yeah, I mean, I’ve done them. I was in “Mindhunter,” and that was an incredible experience.

So you’re open to it? Before we drag this on any further, we want to make sure you would be.

Can you imagine if that happened?

Yes. Yes, I could. So …?

I would be so scared. I absolutely love what he’s done with that role. And since we’re talking about “X-Men,” you’ve got to acknowledge Patrick Stewart. I was absolutely gutted. He’s one of those actors who was a big part of my childhood, like Harrison Ford. He did incredible work that so many different audiences watched. It’s so sad.

Just a small connection I noticed since you brought up Patrick Stewart. Christopher Abbott, who is playing Charles Xavier in the Marvel film, has the same PR representative as you. Is that a coincidence?

Oh shit! Oh my God. We do. You’re good! [Laughs.]

So, I’ll ask one more time then: is there anything you’d like to break here with Variety, exclusively?

I am working on something, but I can’t talk about it.

Hmm …