Triple-threat actor, singer and dancer Ariana Ariana DeBose looked visibly upset to be lumped into joke about ‘actors who think they are singers’ at the 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards in Santa Monica on Sunday night.
Her unamused reaction came as Bella Ramsey and Anthony Ramos were presenting the Best Song category.
The English actor, 20, who identifies as nonbinary and uses all pronouns, introduced the nominees, including Billie Eilish, Lenny Kravitz and Dua Lipa, in the category as ‘some of the most famous voices in the music industry’ before subtly dissing DeBose’s vocal range.
Ramsey then joked, ‘Then there are the actors who think they’re singers: Jack Black, Ariana DeBose, and Ken himself, Ryan Gosling.’
DeBose, who won an Academy Award for starring as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s musical West Side Story (2021), seemed taken aback by the diss, which immediately caused an uproar on social media.
Offended: Triple-threat actor, singer and dancer Ariana including Billie Eilish, Lenny Kravitz and Dua Lipalooked visibly upset to be lumped into joke about ‘actors who think they are singers’ at the 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California
Not okay: DeBose, who won an Academy Award for starring as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s musical West Side Story (2021), seemed taken aback by the diss, which immediately caused an uproar on social media
‘The writers for @CriticsChoice missed the mark with their comment about ‘actors who think they’re singers’ and including Ariana DeBose as part of that list. The woman starred in Broadway musicals – she’s a trained singer,’ one upset viewer wrote on X (previously known as Twitter).
Another condemned the way they ‘insulted Ariana DeBose’ for calling her an ‘actress who thinks she can sing.’
‘I’m sorry, you said that about someone from the OG cast of Hamilton? Google someone before you approve the joke omg,’ one fan fired. ‘It would have made sense if the nominees were well known actors, who are first time singers, but… a Broadway star?!’
A third expressed pity for ‘poor Bella Ramsey’ for having to ‘deliver that HORRIBLY JUDGED ‘joke’ about Ariana DeBose.’
‘I won’t blame young Bella, the presenter…but how DARE a writer for the intro label Ariana, a Broadway triple threat, with the smarmy category of ‘actors who think they can sing,’ another tweeted. ‘Get a clue. Fact check. Apologize. Change your job.’
Others weren’t as forgiving toward Ramsey, with one reminding the Golden Globe nominee that ‘DeBose is an Academy Award winning, Tony nominated Actress.’
‘You have the audacity to say she’s an actress ‘who thinks they can sing’?! one asked Ramsey. ‘That’s not how you present a category or talk about people live on television.’
A handful of social media users pointed out the icy look ‘Ariana Debose made when Bella Ramsey’ listed her among the group of ‘actors who think they’re singers.’
‘The writers for @CriticsChoice missed the mark with their comment about ‘actors who think they’re singers’ and including Ariana DeBose as part of that list. The woman starred in Broadway musicals – she’s a trained singer,’ one upset viewer wrote on X (previously known as Twitter)
A handful of social media users pointed out the icy look ‘Ariana Debose made when Bella Ramsey’ listed her among the group of ‘actors who think they’re singers’
A third expressed pity for ‘poor Bella Ramsey’ for having to ‘deliver that HORRIBLY JUDGED ‘joke’ about Ariana DeBose’
Show some respect: Others weren’t as forgiving toward Ramsey, with one reminding the Golden Globe nominee that ‘DeBose is an Academy Award winning, Tony nominated Actress’
