The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has responded to calls that it owes Andrew Scott an apology following a line of inappropriate interview questions directed toward the Irish actor on the British Academy Film and Television Arts Awards (BAFTA) red carpet.

Andrew Scott was speaking to the press on February 18 prior to the annual BAFTA Awards ceremony in London, when BBC interviewer Colin Paterson asked the actor about his reaction to Barry Keoghan’s nude scene in Saltburn and how well he knew Keoghan.

The All of Us Strangers actor politely tried declining to answer, but Paterson pressed on about the scene’s nudity, saying: “There is a lot of talk about prosthetics, how well do you know him?”

Scott shook his head, laughed it off, and walked away, but the interview went viral, and fans quickly acknowledged how inappropriate the questions were. Many criticised Paterson for continuing the line of questions despite Scott expressing visible discomfort.

Some fans suggested the questions were homophobic, noting that Scott wouldn’t have been asked intimate details about Keoghan’s body if he was straight. Others pointed out that these questions seemed particularly out of line, considering that Scott is not an actor in Saltburn, and the interviewer could have asked plenty of questions about Scott’s role in the All of Us Strangers film instead.

andrew scott did such a great performance in all of us strangers,, but instead you ask him about barry’s grave scene from saltburn pic.twitter.com/UstgMxixDs

— michi? (@ludelak) February 18, 2024

Nearly one week after the uncomfortable red carpet interview, BBC acknowledged that the network received complaints from people who believed the questions posed to Andrew Scott were inappropriate and homophobic.

In response, BBC released an official statement on February 23 that said: “Our reporter began by asking Andrew Scott about the film he’d appeared in – All of Us Strangers – which was nominated for six Baftas. He then moved on to ask about the popularity of Irish actors where Barry Keoghan, star of Saltburn, was mentioned.”

Despite accusations of homophobia, the BBC statement largely defends the Andrew Scott interview, claiming that Saltburn is a cultural film and the scene in question gained a lot of attention. The statement further reads, “Our question to Andrew Scott was meant to be a light-hearted reflection of the discussion around the scene and was not intended to cause offence.”

The statement goes on to say that other stars, including Ellis-Bextor and Saltburn director Emerald Fennell, were asked similar questions.

In terms of an apology, BBC said: “We do, however, accept that the specific question asked to Andrew Scott was misjudged. After speaking with Andrew on the carpet, our reporter acknowledged on air that his questioning may have gone too far and that he was sorry if this was the case.”