The American actor is accused of sexually assaulting a man in the early 2000s, and of having forced this person “to engage in non-consensual sexual intercourse”.
American actor Kevin Spacey appears Friday, December 16 in a London court to answer new charges of sexual assault, dating from the early 2000s, a few months after pleading not guilty to other similar charges. The 63-year-old Hollywood star should be present by video-conference at this hearing, which is being held at 2:00 p.m. (local time and GMT) before a Westminster Court and should not relate to the merits of the case.
Kevin Spacey is accused of sexually assaulting a man between 2001 and 2004, including forcing that person “to engage in non-consensual sexual intercourse”, the Crown Prosecutor’s Service (CPS) said last month. The latter then authorized the police to add seven new charges to the already heavy file against Kevin Spacey. The two-time Oscar winner (for American Beauty and Usual Suspects) has already been prosecuted for four sexual assaults on three men between March 2005 and April 2013, when he was director of the London theater Old Vic.
Heard in July during a preliminary hearing on these facts, for which he had made the trip to London, he had pleaded not guilty. The trial is to be held in June 2023. After the green light from the prosecution, the actor said he was “disappointed” but announced his intention to appear before the British courts for “prove his innocence”.
The opportunity to reveal his homosexuality
The charges against him were made in the wake of the #MeToo movement and the Weinstein scandal, named after the American film producer targeted by numerous accusations of harassment and sexual assault, revealed in the fall of 2017. They had serious consequences on the career of the actor, since he was notably landed by Netflix from the hit series House of Cards, in which he played the main character.
Kevin Spacey has also faced charges in the United States. Last October, the comedian was found not guilty of sexual touching by a New York civil court. Actor Anthony Rapp accused him of molesting him 36 years ago at a party in Manhattan. Kevin Spacey had vigorously contested these accusations, but this case was an opportunity for him to reveal his homosexuality. Also in the United States, Kevin Spacey had been charged with indecent assault and sexual assault on an 18-year-old young man in a bar in the state of Massachusetts, on the East Coast. The charges were dropped in July 2019.
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