Royal BAFTA gaffe: Prince William makes awkward comment to 'How To Have Sex' actress Mia McKenna-Bruce

LONDON, ENGLAND: Prince William could have fallen short in his attempt to applaud Rising Star winner Mia McKenna-Bruce at this year's BAFTA Film Awards.

While speaking with McKenna-Bruce, who won a BAFTA for her film 'How To Have Sex', the Prince of Wales seems to have made a mistake when he claimed the film was "a lot of fun," despite not having watched it.

The Prince of Wales—who noted that the category was full of outstanding talents—was excited to meet McKenna-Bruce and her fellow candidates, Ayo Edebiri, Phoebe Dynevor, and Sophie Wilde on Sunday, February 18, at the Royal Festival Hall in London, per Radar Online.

Prince William says the movie 'looked like a lot of fun'

William, 41, was addressing McKenna-Bruce, the Rising Star recipient who earned praise for her performance in the coming-of-age film.

The 26-year-old won the coveted award for her portrayal of Tara, a virgin who travels to the Greek island of Malia with friends and is sexually assaulted by a fellow visitor.

However, William informed the actress that it appeared to be a "lot of fun" though he had not seen the movie.

The future monarch remarked, "I haven't yet watched your film - I think it looked like you had a lot of fun all the way through," to McKenna-Bruce, who has also starred in 'Tracy Beaker Returns'.

"The category was so strong, all of you — it was like who is going to pull this off?," he further said backstage, "It was incredible. It was very close between all of you."

After McKenna-Bruce suggested William watch her film, the prince replied: "I've got a lot of films to catch up on. Normally I get quite ahead of the awards ceremony, I get to see quite a few of them. I haven't managed to get that many through."

"The competition in all the categories were so strong this year," he exclaimed and further stated, "And also what's so lovely is there was diversity in so many areas."

While some thought it was an "embarrassing" mistake, many viewers did not hold the prince responsible for his miscalculation about her having "fun" during the dramatic film's production.

Asserting that he had "other things" on his mind, the father-of-three expressed regret during the event for confirming his attendance at the BAFTAs late in the day and for not watching many of the films.

Mia McKenna-Bruce described 'How To Have Sex' as an important movie

According to McKenna-Bruce, 'How To Have Sex' is an important film, especially for young people who are in this stage of self-discovery in their lives.

The actress expressed her hope that the movie would help "people talk about situations they've been through" and advance the "conversation we've been having around consent" in society.

She stated, "There's a kind of expectation that you should just know what to do when it comes to losing your virginity or talking about consent, then you're just left to figure it out on your own."

'How To Have Sex', a 15-rated film written and directed by Molly Manning Walker, took home the Un Certain Regard Award after making its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2023, per Daily Mail.