The #MeToo movement changed the Hollywood landscape forever, while also extending to other industries. One of the A-list talents who was accused of sexual assault at this time was House of Cards actor Kevin Spacey, who was promptly fired from the acclaimed Netflix series. And now the 62 year-old Oscar winner has been charged with four counts of sexual assault in the U.K..
This news comes to us from Variety, and is just the latest charge against Kevin Spacey due to to allegations of sexual assault. This time the case is across the pond, and it remains to be seen how things will ultimately play out. A quote was provided by Rosemary Ainslie, head of the CPS Special Crime Division, which reads:
The CPS has authorised criminal charges against Kevin Spacey, 62, for four counts of sexual assault against three men. He has also been charged with causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent. The charges follow a review of the evidence gathered by the Metropolitan Police in its investigation
The statement also emphasized that Kevin Spacey has the right to a fair trial in the U.K.. While there's no timeline given for when this this might play out, it's sure to turn a few heads. Because depending on how things work out in the courts, this could be the first time that Spacey faces any intense legal consequences for the various lawsuits that have been thrown his way over the last few years.
The allegations made against Kevin Spacey started coming to life back in 2017, when Star Trek: Discovery and RENT actor Anthony Rapp accused him of making sexual advances to him when he was just 14 years old. Since then a number of other accusers have come out with their own stories, some of which sued the American Beauty actor. This includes Rapp himself, although Spacey attempted to get the case thrown out.
While Kevin Spacey's legal issues now extend out of the country, a number of the lawsuits stateside have hit setbacks for the accusers. A few of the cases were dropped, which seemed to be a good sign for the actor. But it seems that Spacey isn't out of the woods quite yet legally.
As previously mentioned, Kevin Spacey was fired from House of Cards shortly after the allegations started coming out, some of which reportedly happened on the Netflix series set. He was also cut out of the movie All The Money in the World. Since then Spacey's whereabout have been an ongoing mystery, with the actor occasionally dropping strange videos as his character Francis Underwood. While he's been largely absent from Hollywood, he has worked on a handful of film projects.
It remains to be see if/how the legal proceedings are different in the U.K.. Those following the Johnny Depp legal saga will remember that the court ultimately decided against the actor's libel case against The Sun. We'll just have to see how things ultimately end up whenever Kevin Spacey goes to trial.
