Taraji P. Henson’s night as host of the BET Awards turned awkward after a video clip surfaced showing a cringe-worthy exchange with celebrity food critic Keith Lee.
The actress, best known for her role in the hit series Empire, is in hot water after fans accuse her of flirting with Lee in front of his wife.
The incident at the 2024 BET Awards over the weekend ignited a storm of social media reactions, with many questioning Taraji’s behavior and sobriety.
Taraji P. Henson attempted to show love by handing roses to stars in the BET Awards audience on Sunday, only to make several embarrassing mistakes.
Throughout the ceremony, fans were forced to look away several times as she mispronounced and misidentified celebrities.
In one embarrassing moment, Henson was caught mispronouncing Halle Bailey’s name while engaging her in the crowd. The host was stopped in her tracks when she saw nominee Halle Bailey in the audience.
During the awkward exchange, she mispronounced the singer’s name as “hay-lee” (rather than “howl-lee”) and congratulated her for “making another baby out of black love” while the Little Mermaid star remained mum and diplomatically smiling.
In another “embarrassing” exchange, Taraji mistakenly identified food critic and mixed martial artist Keith Lee as YouTuber Jordan Howlett.
“Meth is married — are you?” Henson asked before awkwardly making it clear to viewers that she thought Howlett was another TikToker, food critic Keith Lee.
Howlett swiftly corrected Henson by pointing to Lee and his wife, Ronni, sitting beside him in the crowd.
During the exchange, Taraji was seen openly flirting with Lee and grabbing his hand, joking that she was a “10.9 out of 10” until he shut it down, gesturing to his wife sitting beside him.
She called Lee “fine, too” in front of his wife before walking away.
Social media users couldn’t help but cringe at Henson’s embarrassing gaffe.
It remains to be seen whether Henson’s reputation as a host will be tarnished by this blunder.
