Baftas 2022: Rebel Wilson says Kenneth Branagh is the ‘only director not afraid to give Armie Hammer a job’

Actor stars in Branagh’s mystery movie ‘Death on the Nile’

Baftas 2022 host Rebel Wilson made a joke about Armie Hammer’s career prospects as she opened the awards ceremony on Sunday (13 March).

The comedian was pointing out famous attendees in the audience when she said: “Kenneth Branagh is here. The only director not afraid to give Armie Hammer a job. Brave!”

Hammer’s latest project was Branagh’s mystery movie Death on the Nile.

The actor, who denied allegations of rape and abuse last year, was largely cut from the trailer for Branagh’s film.

At the end of 2020, multiple women accused Hammer of emotional abuse, manipulation and coercion. In April 2021, a woman accused Hammer of rape.

Hammer denied the allegations, but was dropped by his agents at William Morris and withdrew from a number of projects, including the Jennifer Lopez movie Shotgun Wedding and The Godfather TV series.

In June last year, Hammer reportedly checked into a treatment centre in Florida, where he was seeking help for “drug, alcohol and sex issues”.

‘Death on the Nile’ (20th Century / Disney)

At this year’s Baftas – which took place at the Royal Albert Hall in London – Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic Dune led the pack with 11 nominations, closely followed by Jane Campion’s western The Power of the Dog, which amassed a total of eight.

See the full winners list here.

If you have been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support. For more information, visit their website here.