David Tennant Says ‘Villain’ Donald Trump’s Name Three Times in BAFTAs Monologue: ‘It’s Like Beetlejuice — I’ve Summoned Him’
David Tennant took to the podium as the BAFTA Film Awards host for a second time on Sunday night — and called out U.S. President Donald Trump.
The “Doctor Who” star, who also hosted last year’s ceremony, opened with a performance of the Proclaimers’ hit “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” getting members of the audience — including James McAvoy, Anna Kendrick and Colman Domingo join in.
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Tennant then took aim at Trump in his monologue, describing “The Brutalist” as “a film about incredible architecture. In fact, it’s the boldest architecture in film this year, apart from Donald Trump’s hair in ‘The Apprentice.'”
He continued, “Donald Trump, he says he hasn’t seen ‘The Apprentice’ because it’s a 15 [referring to the U.K. film rating]. It’s not on Nickelodeon. Donald Trump … I’m worried. I’ve said his name three times. It’s like ‘Beetlejuice’ — I’ve summoned him. And talking of villains…” Tennant then went on to mention “Nosferatu” and Hugh Grant in “The Heretic.”
Tennant also compared “Conclave” to James Bond, saying: “100 machinating schemers trying to decide between a conservative or progressive candidate, diversity or tradition. Its like picking the next James Bond.”
But the “Conclave” jokes didn’t stop there — Tennant said it “makes a lot of sense” that Stanley Tucci plays a character named Cardinal Bellini, “because if anyone knows how to whip up an excellent Bellini…”
Alongside Tennant as host, the 2025 BAFTAs is set to feature performances from Take That, singing “Greatest Day” from the opening scene of “Anora,” and Jeff Goldblum, who played the piano during the in memoriam section.
Going into the ceremony, “Conclave” led with 12 nominations, followed by Jacques Audiard’s Spanish-language musical-thriller “Emilia Perez” with 11. Further down, Brady Corbet’s American epic “The Brutalist” landed nine nominations, followed by seven for “Anora,” “Dune: Part Two” and “Wicked” and six for “A Complete Unknown” and low-budget Irish-language biopic “Kneecap.”
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