The new biopic I Swear centers on Scottish activist John Davidson, a figure who helped bring public attention to Tourette’s in Britain. Actor Robert Aramayo took on the role after months of preparation and close contact with Davidson himself. The film’s UK reception led to a pair of major accolades for Aramayo at the BAFTAs — the public-voted Rising Star prize and the Best Actor trophy — recognition that places him alongside previous recipients such as James McAvoy, John Boyega, Tom Holland, and Tom Hardy. The awards night also became notable for a disturbing incident involving Davidson that dominated headlines.
Aramayo’s portrayal is widely described as careful and empathetic: he follows Davidson from early symptoms through his activism and public life. Audiences in the United States are now getting the chance to see the film as it opens stateside via a Sony Pictures Classics release. While Aramayo has appeared in projects familiar to American viewers — including The Empty Man, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, and Game of Thrones — this role has been singled out as a defining performance that invites viewers to better understand neurodiversity and the realities of living with tics.
Immersion and groundwork
Documentary influence and early research
Aramayo began by consuming existing material about Davidson and the condition he lives with: the 1989 documentary John’s Not Mad was one of the touchstones that shaped public perception of Davidson for generations. The actor was given time by the production team to research thoroughly: he watched documentaries, read books, and studied online footage to learn how tics can present in many different ways. Rather than treating the role as mimicry, Aramayo focused on understanding the broader clinical and social context so that his depiction would feel truthful rather than performative.
Community time and location work
To ground his performance Aramayo based himself in Galashiels and spent weeks shadowing Davidson and meeting people with similar experiences. He connected with organizations such as Tourette Scotland and opened conversations with individuals whose stories expanded his sense of the condition’s variety. That direct contact was essential for developing a portrayal that acknowledged both public-facing moments and the private emotional life a biopic can explore in ways a documentary cannot. Those encounters also reinforced that one encounter with a person who has Tourette’s does not represent everyone with the condition: experiences are highly individual.
What surprised him about Tourette’s
During research Aramayo encountered facts that changed his assumptions: the range of tics can be enormous, including many that are not immediately obvious as tics. He learned about internal or less visible symptoms and the way comorbid conditions, such as OCD, can interact with tics. He also cited statistics that underline how common persistent tic disorders are in youth: roughly one in 50 children in the United States have a persistent tic disorder and about one in 160 have Tourette’s. Aramayo noted that many people remain undiagnosed — an estimated fifty percent in the U.S. — which strengthened his view that the film could serve an educational purpose.
Performance choices and training
Aramayo has said he intentionally avoided simple impersonation. Rather than reproducing every recorded tic or mannerism, he sought to claim the role as his own while remaining respectful of Davidson’s lived experience. His training at Juilliard provided tools and a vocabulary to approach the work — a toolbox of methods that continues to inform choices on set. That background allowed him to shift from immersive research toward specific acting choices only when he felt ready to shape a cinematic character rather than merely reproduce documentary footage.
BAFTAs, controversy, and audience hopes
Aramayo experienced an emotional awards season: the morning of the nominations was a quiet moment interrupted by surprise when he learned he was on the BAFTA shortlist, and his eventual wins left him stunned. He collected the Rising Star award and Best Actor, overcoming competition that included Timothée Chalamet, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ethan Hawke, Jesse Plemons, and Michael B. Jordan. However, the same ceremony was overshadowed by racist outbursts from Davidson himself directed at several stars, including members of the cast of Sinners. Those remarks produced swift fallout that may affect how the film is discussed as it reaches American audiences.
Beyond awards and headlines, Aramayo hopes the film will prompt curiosity and learning. He wants viewers to come away with a clearer sense of what Tourette’s can look like and to understand that the condition affects both the person who ticcs and those around them. He encourages audiences to seek reliable information — for example, resources from the Tourette Association of America — and to watch the film with the complexity of the subject in mind. Ultimately, Aramayo says he simply wants to keep working, to continue learning from collaborators, and to use this moment to amplify understanding rather than distraction.