BAFTA suspends Bryan Singer's Bohemian Rhapsody nomination in wake of misconduct allegations

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts announced Wednesday that it has suspended Bryan Singer’s BAFTA Award nomination for Bohemian Rhapsody in the wake of new sexual misconduct allegations against the filmmaker.

“BAFTA considers the alleged behaviour completely unacceptable and incompatible with its values,” the organization said in a statement. “This has led to Mr Singer’s suspended nomination. BAFTA notes Mr Singer’s denial of the allegations. The suspension of his nomination will therefore remain in place until the outcome of the allegations has been resolved.”

Singer, 53, was nominated alongside Bohemian Rhapsody producers Graham King and Anthony McCarten in the Outstanding British Film category.

Last month, a report in The Atlantic detailed new allegations of Singer of having sex with boys under the age of 18. Singer said in a statement to EW that the story “rehashes claims from bogus lawsuits filed by a disreputable cast of individuals willing to lie for money or attention.” The filmmaker faced similar allegations in 2014.

Bohemian Rhapsody star Rami Malek, who has been the surprise darling of awards season with his portrayal of Freddie Mercury, earning an Oscar nomination and wins at the Golden Globes and SAG Awards, recently told the Los Angeles Times that he was “not aware of” the allegations against Singer when he signed on to make the film.

Bohemian Rhapsody is still nominated for Outstanding British Film, as well as six other BAFTA Awards, which will be handed out Feb. 10 in London. The ceremony comes just two weeks before the 91st Oscars, where Bohemian Rhapsody has five nominations.

Related Content:

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• Bohemian Rhapsody director Bryan Singer faces new allegations of having sex with underage boys
• Rami Malek says he was ‘not aware of’ Bryan Singer allegations before making Bohemian Rhapsody