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Alan Cumming explains in more detail his reasoning behind the return of a British honor he has held since 2009.
The 58-year-old Scottish actor, who announced on his birthday on Friday that he had returned his honor as an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, tells PEOPLE more about the reason for this decision while attending AARP’s 21st Annual Movies for Grownups Awards on Saturday.
Noting that the reaction to his move has been “incredible,” Cumming says, “I mean, first of all, I didn’t expect so much attention to this.”
“It was really positive,” he continues. “People have really understood why it’s complicated, it’s complex, it’s not a black or white thing.”
Cumming adds, “I tried to say that in my statement, and people really responded to that. I think times change and things change, and you change how you feel about something.”
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Photo by Alay Princess Anne and Alan Cumming
RELATED: Alan Cumming returns Britain’s honor awarded by Queen Elizabeth for ‘imperial toxicity’ ‘reluctance’
The honor was presented to Cumming in 2009 by the late Queen Elizabeth II as part of her Birthday Honors List, where the star was recognized for his acting work and campaigning for LGBTQ+ rights. Princess Anne presented him with the award at Buckingham Palace.
When he revealed the news that he had returned the OBE, Cumming posted a message on Instagram announcing “something I recently did for myself”.
“The Queen’s death and the conversations that followed about the role of the monarchy and in particular how the British Empire benefited at the expense (and death) of indigenous peoples around the world really opened up to me the eyes”, Traitors host wrote. “Furthermore, fortunately, times and laws in the United States have changed, and the great good that the award brought to the LGBTQ+ cause in 2009 is now less powerful than the apprehensions I have of being associated with the toxicity of empire (OBE stands for Officer of the British Empire).”
He continued, “So I returned my award, explained my reasons, and reiterated my great gratitude for receiving it in the first place. I’m old Alan Cumming again. Happy birthday!”
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Cumming – who was honored at an investiture ceremony – is not the first honoree to return or refuse an award or recognition presented by the Royal Family. Some of those names include David Bowie (who turned down two awards: a Commander of the British Empire in 2000 and a knighthood in 2003), director Danny Boyle (who turned down a knighthood in 2013) and The Chronicles of Narnia author CS Lewis (who refused a CBE in 1952).
Additionally, Michael Sheen quietly returned the award in 2017 after receiving it in 2009. “By the time I had finished writing this lecture [about the relationship between England and Wales]… I remember sitting there saying, ‘Well, I have a choice – either I don’t give this lecture and I hang on to my OBE, or I give this lecture and I have to give back my OBE’,” Sheen said The Guardian columnist Owen Jones in 2020.
Photo by Alay Alan Cumming and Princess Anne
Elsewhere during the Movies for Grownups Awards, Cumming chatted with PEOPLE about how the second season of his new show Traitors will leave him “crazier things to wear”.
The competition, which he hosts, takes place in a remote castle in the Scottish Highlands and competitors are vying for a whopping quarter of a million dollars.
Cumming said there were also “heaps” of off-screen moments he wished viewers could see on the Peacock show, which features contestants, including The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills the former Brandi Glanville, Big brotheris Rachel Reilly and Survivorby Stephanie LaGrossa.
“I mean things happened that weren’t, probably not intended for mass consumption,” he says. “People freak out. People freak out at various times… But you know, you get the gist.”