Kevin Spacey Acquitted of All Charges of Sexual Offenses

Kevin Spacey, the Hollywood star and American actor, has been acquitted of all nine charges of sexual offenses by a jury of his peers. 

Reuters reported this.

The trial centered around allegations made by four men who accused the film and theater actor of harassment and violence during the period from 2001 to 2013 when Spacey was serving as the artistic director of a London theater. This was the third trial for Spacey, and he had won the two previous ones. One of the men who brought the case described his encounter with Spacey as something that "completely traumatized and destroyed" his life. Spacey, however, denied any wrongdoing in any of the incidents, claiming that he engaged in messy relationships and flirtations that led to "random, consensual sexual encounters," emphasizing that all interactions were voluntary and mutual.

Prosecutor Christine Agnew referred to Spacey as a "sexual predator" who targeted young men, but after the verdict, the Royal Prosecution Service stated that they "respect" the court's decision. Following the trial, Spacey addressed the press, stating that the legal ordeal had been "humiliating" for him:

"I think many of you can understand that I need a lot of time to process what just happened today. I am immensely grateful to the jury for taking the time to carefully review all the evidence and facts before reaching their verdict."

Kevin Spacey is a two-time Oscar winner, honored for his supporting role in the film "The Usual Suspects" directed by Bryan Singer and for his leading role in "American Beauty" directed by Sam Mendes. In 2017, the actor publicly came out, coinciding with the rise of the #MeToo movement in the USA. That same year, he faced his first sexual assault accusation from actor Anthony Rapp. After Buzzfeed published an article detailing Rapp's allegations, Spacey's professional and career prospects suffered significantly - his involvement in the TV drama "House of Cards" was canceled, and the same fate befell the film "All the Money in the World." In 2022, he was ordered by a court to pay nearly $31 million to the film studio MRC, which produced "House of Cards," for breaching his contract and the company's policy amid sexual harassment allegations. Since then, he has not been cast in any films, series, or shows.

Spacey himself, commenting on these circumstances, mentioned that due to lack of work, he still had bills to pay and complained about "hasty judgments":

"Even before the question was asked or the first response was given, I had lost my job, my reputation, I had lost everything - in a matter of days."

Spacey's lawyer, Patrick Gibbs, stated that loving sex or engaging in casual sex is not a crime, even for a well-known person, adding that "it is not a crime to have sex with someone of the same sex because it is now 2023, not 1823."

During the trial, several actor colleagues and celebrities came to Spacey's defense, including Val Kilmer and Judi Dench, who, as the court learned, enjoyed playing table tennis with Spacey. The court also heard testimony from singer Elton John and his husband David Furnish, who gave their evidence via video link from Monaco in support of Spacey.