Kevin Spacey burst into tears during harassment trial: ‘I’m shocked’

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American actor and director Kevin Spacey denied allegations of sexual harassment against him and said that he had never even been alone with Anthony Rapp. It is reported by Associated Press with reference to the transcript of the meeting.

During a hearing in the $40 million case, the 63-year-old actor said that Rapp’s allegations that he was harassed by Spacey at the age of 14 in 1986 were lies:

I knew that I would have no sexual interest in Anthony Rapp or any other child. I was shocked. I was scared and confused. I have never been alone with Anthony Rapp. These accusations are not true.

Spacey added that the accusations against him arose during the growth of the #MeToo movement and that everyone in Hollywood was afraid of it. According to AP, at that moment the actor could not contain his emotions and burst into tears. He allegedly “wiped his tears with a napkin and sobbed, describing the pressure from journalists and lawyers who demanded that he come out with a statement and apologize to Rapp.

I was told that I could not dismiss this story. At the time, the #MeToo movement was only gaining momentum and the film industry was very nervous. Fear was in the air about who would be next.

The actor told jurors that he regretted “all his testimony” that he had previously given. Recall that in 2017 he did not deny allegations of sexual harassment by Rapp on the advice of his managers. After that, he was accused of harassment and rape by 15 more people, including nine colleagues who worked on House of Cards. In June 2019, Massachusetts prosecutors dropped the sexual assault charges against Spacey.

I learned my lesson: never apologize for something you didn’t do,” he said.

Recall that the creators of “House of Cards” broke off relations with Spacey in 2017 after numerous accusations of sexual violence and harassment. They conducted their own investigation after information surfaced that Spacey had been molested by one of the production assistants. The film studio had to first suspend the shooting of the series with the participation of the actor, and then completely fire the lead actor and rewrite the script for the sixth season, which was the last (and, by the way, received mostly negative reviews). According to representatives of the studio, all these actions caused multimillion-dollar costs, which they declared in court, filing a lawsuit against Spacey back in 2019. Formally, the actor was accused of violating the rules of conduct on the site, as indicated in the contract. This included, among other things, the inadmissibility of sexual harassment in the workplace.

What started it all. At the end of October 2017, actor Anthony Rapp said that in 1986 Spacey tried to persuade him to have sex. At that time, Rapp was 14 years old. According to Rapp, in the early 80s, the actors played in one of the Broadway musicals. One day, 25-year-old Spacey invited a 14-year-old colleague to a party at his home. After the guests dispersed, Spacey laid the guest on the bed and lay down on top. There was no contact between them: Rapp managed to free himself from Spacey’s embrace. According to the actor, he decided to make a confession after a scandal broke out with producer Harvey Weinstein. In his blog, Kevin Spacey, who was forced to confess his bisexuality, turned to Anthony Rapp and apologized to him:

I have a lot of respect and admiration for Anthony Rapp as an actor. I was horrified to hear his story. I honestly don’t remember the meeting, it was over 30 years ago. But if I acted as he describes, I must offer him a sincere apology for my extremely inappropriate drunken behavior. I’m sorry that the feelings he describes were with him for many years…

In addition to Rapp, he was accused of a sex crime by an anonymous man who signed with the initials CD and stated that he attended Spacey’s acting classes at the age of 12. In a lawsuit filed in New York Supreme Court, CD says Spacey invited him to his apartment and “had sex with him.” During their last meeting, Spacey attacked the teenager, although he tried to fight back. Only one case reached the court, which did not end with anything. The hearing was adjourned due to the unavailability of a witness for the prosecution.