Ayo Edebiri's Reaction During Prince William Meeting At BAFTAs Resurfaces Long-Standing Irish Joke

Ayo Edebiri made the rounds on social media after her most recent interaction with Prince William.

The Prince of Wales met the EE Rising Stars nominees Phoebe Dynevor, Sophie Wilde, Mia McKenna-Bruce and Edebiri at the 2024 BAFTAs. Photos of their interaction went viral as netizens got drawn to Edebiri's animated facial reaction.

In the photo, Edebiri appeared very engrossed with what the future king was saying with raised eyebrows. Others claimed she looked shocked or suspicious. However, most of the reactions brought up her long-standing Irish joke.

"That Irish traditional suspicious look Ayo is giving when meeting the British royals," one commented.

Another added, "Top Irish Royalty meeting William."

"She's definitely Irish," a third person wrote with a green heart. "Lmfao. There's no doubt she is absolutely Irish," a fourth person said with a grinning face with a sweat emoji.

"Certified Irish moment," a different user opined.

Another stated, "The Queen of Ireland and The Prince of Wales."

The Ireland joke involving Edebiri started from her interview with Letterboxd on the "Bottoms" red carpet last March. The comedian joked that she starred in the Oscar-nominated film "The Banshees of Inisherin" as Jenny the donkey. Edebiri went full into her Irish accent while joking about playing the character for four months.

"I lived in Ireland for about four months, and I got really in character," Edebiri said, per Teen Vogue. "And I was on all fours for four months, and it was really painful but beautiful as well. And it was probably the most fulfilling part of my career."

She continued, "I'm so happy for everybody going to the Oscars, even though I deserved the nomination more than anybody else because I was, obviously, a donkey for four months."

Jenny the donkey, which Edebiri mentioned, was not an actual character in the movie. The comedian was also joking about being a part of the project.

Although Edebiri's reaction while speaking with Prince William was difficult to read, she and her colleagues actually had a great exchange with the Duke of Cambridge. Based on a clip of their encounter shared on X, Prince William shook hands with each of them, and no one looked appalled or afraid. But the netizens made assumptions and joked about it, per Business Insider.

During their conversation, the future king actually asked the nominees if there was a moment in their lives when they realized their careers were taking off.

"Yeah, now," McKenna-Bruce replied, prompting Prince William to chuckle.

"Is now the one? I think now might be the one," Edebiri added.

Meanwhile, when Edebiri accepted her Critics Choice Award for Best Actress in a Comedy on Jan. 14, she gave Ireland a shout-out in her acceptance speech.

"I want to thank my real family, I don't know if they have CW abroad. To everybody in Boston, Barbados, Nigeria, Ireland in many ways," she said, per The Hollywood Reporter. "Thank you so much."

Three of the places Edebiri mentioned made sense. She was born in Boston to a Barbarian mother and a Nigerian father. However, the mention of Ireland was part of her long-standing Irish joke.

Her running gag about Ireland was well-received by netizens, with many calling her the Irish princess. Outlets like The Irish Times also embraced Edebiri's wisecrack, noting that they were "proud" to call her one of their own.

Film in Dublin even congratulated her for her 2024 BAFTA nomination on X, formerly Twitter.

"Congratulations to Ireland's own Ayo Edebiri for her nomination for the 2024 BAFTA Rising Star Award," the tweet read. "for the record, yes we do know where Edebiri is actually from (Ireland)."

Ireland used to be part of the United Kingdom. However, the Irish Republican Army fought for its independence between 1919 and 1921, which ended in the division of Ireland. Southern Ireland is the Irish Free State, while Northern Ireland remains part of the U.K. along with England, Wales and Scotland, according to History.