US actor Kevin Spacey, 63, has to pay the production company of the Netflix series “House of Cards” high compensation after allegations of sexual assault. A Los Angeles court ordered the payment of nearly $31 million, US media reported, citing court documents. Judge Mel Red Recana’s ruling upheld a previous 2020 arbitration decision, the report said Variety. Spacey’s lawyers appealed the verdict in court.
The case involved breach of contract. The arbitral tribunal found that Spacey had violated the code of conduct that had been contractually agreed with the production company MRC.
Spacey had played the lead role of Frank Underwood in five seasons of the Netflix hit “House of Cards” until the fall of 2017, when allegations of sexual assault and harassment against Spacey were made during the #MeToo debate. Spacey has also been accused of sexual harassment by crew members. Netflix then canceled Spacey’s collaboration. The arbitral tribunal later agreed with production company MRC that Spacey was responsible for millions of dollars in lost revenue.
Spacey is currently being tried in a London court for alleged sexual assault. In mid-July, the Oscar winner (“American Beauty”, “The Usual Suspects”) rejected the allegations. It is about five alleged acts in England between 2005 and 2013.