hearing
Kevin Spacey pleads innocent in court
Kevin Spacey, actor from the USA, on his way to the London courthouse. Photo: Frank Augstein/AP/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
The American actor has to answer before a London court. He is accused of sexual assault against several men.
Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey has denied the allegations in a London court in the sexual assault case. He was innocent, said the Oscar winner (“American Beauty”, “The Usual Suspects”) on Thursday before the Old Bailey Criminal Court.
The 62-year-old had previously confirmed his name and date of birth. The public prosecutor accuses the Americans of a total of five acts against three men between 2005 and 2013. Spacey remains at large. It was one hearing, and another is planned for early 2023.
The former Hollywood star has been accused of four counts of sexual assault. In another case, the charge is “penetrative sexual activity without consent”. The alleged crimes are said to have occurred in London and in the western English county of Gloucestershire. Spacey was then artistic director of the London theater The Old Vic. Those affected are now between 30 and 50 years old.
In the course of the #MeToo debate, allegations were made
At a first hearing in June, Spacey’s attorney, Patrick Gibbs, said his client firmly rejected any criminal allegation. He returned to London to prove his innocence. The British prosecutor’s office, the Crown Prosecution Service, made allegations against Spacey in May, but was only able to formally charge him after he landed in the UK.
In 2017, allegations of sexual assault and harassment against Spacey emerged as part of the #MeToo debate. The Old Vic reported 20 complaints received about inappropriate behavior against the American. Spacey lost his role on the Netflix series House of Cards. There, too, crew members had accused him of sexual harassment. He also had to pay the production company MRC $ 31 million (about 27.6 million euros at the time) in compensation for lost revenue and avoided the public for years.