Actor Neil Patrick Harris went all out to make an impression in his role as the host of the Tony Awards, but he may have got a bit carried away.
In his opening performance the How I Met Your Mother star did a number with former heavyweight champion of the world, Mike Tyson.
And as he sang alongside Tyson he appeared to have dropped the N-word singing: 'Is I his n***a' as Iron Mike danced beside him on stage at Radio City Hall.
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Poetic liberties? Tonys' host Neil Patrick Harris appeared to sing the N-word as part of his opening performance alongside former boxing champ Mike Tyson
Seasoned performer: Patrick Harris is a veteran of the Broadway stage... and his use of the N-word is bound to stir up debate
WHAT DO YOU THINK NEIL PATRICK HARRIS IS SINGING?
As part of his eight-minute opening number seasoned performer Patrick Harris sings: 'In tandem like we planned 'em, forgive me if it's random but Mike Tyson had a one man show let's give the man a hand.
'And make things bigger, like bigger
'I'm here with Iron Mike Tyson he's a heavyweight yo
'We're going bigger, is I his n***a'.
Tyson, seemed oblivious to the use of the word - and smiled as he danced next to Patrick Harris.
And while the actor was performing the song as part of a comedic routine if he did use the word its sure to ruffle feathers.
Neil has tweeted a strong denial claiming he would 'never be so disrespectful.'
A representative for the star told MailOnline: 'Neil absolutely and unequivocally DID NOT use derogatory language in the opening number of the Tony Awards.'
Oblivious: Mike Tyson appeared non-plussed by the use of the word and enjoyed showing off a more comedic side as he danced onstage
Use of the word is seen as controversial as debate still rages over its use in both the black and white community.
Media behemoth Oprah Winfrey has grilled rapper Jay-Z about his use of the word in an interview for her show.
Winfrey is staunchly against the use of the racial epithet. She said: 'When I hear the N-word, I still think about every black man who was lynched - and the N-word was the last thing he heard. So we'll just have to disagree about this.'
The rapper, on the other hand, acknowledged that use of the N-word in rap lyrics wasn't necessary but argued that the slur no longer stings as it once did.
Stylish: Former boxer/actor Mike Tyson and third wife Lakiha Spicer posed on the red carpet ahead of his performance
Nothing is necessary,' he explained to Winfrey.
'It's just become part of the way we communicate. My generation hasn't had the same experience with that word that generations of people before us had.
'We weren't so close to the pain. So in our way, we disarmed the word. We took the fire pin out of the grenade.'
Throughout the show Patrick Harris sang, dance, cracked jokes and bizarrely did an open-mouthed French kiss with Sandy, the dog from Annie.
That's not cute: Neil Patrick Harris gets very close to the dog from Annie on stage during the American Theatre Wing's annual Tony Awards in New York
He was introducing the cast of A Christmas Story: The Musical and employed the dog to help him do it. The dog started off kissing his cheek and it escalated from there.
'You do know I'm in a relationship, right?' he cracked to Sandy.
Patrick Harris is a veteran performer on Broadway and has hosted the Tonys three times previously.
He is in a relationship with David Burtka and the pair, who are friends of Elton John and David Furnish, are parents to twins Gideon Scott and Harper Grace, who were born via surrogate in 2010.
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