LONDON — LONDON (AP) — Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey has denied new allegations of inappropriate behavior by men who will feature in a British television documentary due to be broadcast next week.
In an online interview with journalist Dan Wootton, Spacey said he had never done anything illegal and admitted he had struggled to return to work after being acquitted of charges last year criminal charges by a London court.
“I can’t go through that again, allowing myself to be baselessly attacked without defending myself,” he said in the interview titled “Kevin Spacey: Right Of Reply” which aired Friday night on Wootton’s YouTube channel.
Last July, a London jury acquitted Spacey of sexual assault charges stemming from allegations by four men dating back 20 years. The legal victory was his second since winning a $40 million lawsuit in 2022 in New York brought by “Star Trek: Discovery” actor Anthony Rapp.
The documentary “Spacey Unmasked” will be broadcast on May 6 and 7 on Channel 4 in Britain and on Max in the United States.
The documentary would feature testimonies from men regarding events that occurred between 1976 and 2013, the actor revealed during the interview.
“I take full responsibility for my past behavior and actions, but I cannot and will not take responsibility or apologize to anyone who made things up about me or exaggerated stories about me ” said Spacey, who won Oscars for “The Usual Suspects.” » and “American Beauty”.
“I have never told anyone that if they do me sexual favors, I will help them in their career, ever,” he added.
Spacey, who was artistic director of London’s Old Vic Theater from 2004 to 2015, again admitted he “flirted” with men in their 20s and sometimes made “awkward” passes.
“I definitely met men who thought they could advance in their careers by having a relationship with me,” he said. “But there was no conversation with me, it was all part of their plan, a plan. It was always doomed to failure, because I was not involved in the matter.
The actor also claimed on X, formerly Twitter, that he had “repeatedly asked” Channel 4 to give him more than seven days to respond to the allegations made about him in their documentary.
Spacey said the network declined “on the basis that it believes that requesting a response within 7 days to new anonymized and non-specific allegations is a ‘fair opportunity’ for me to refute any allegations made against me.”
“Every time I have had time and an appropriate forum to defend myself, the allegations have failed and I have been exonerated,” he added.
Spacey said he struggled to return to work after being acquitted of all criminal charges, describing his experience as a “life sentence.”
His acting career has been affected since 2017, when he was first publicly accused of inappropriate behavior during the early days of the #MeToo movement. He then lost his starring role as Frank Underwood in the Netflix drama “House of Cards.”
Channel 4 has been contacted for comment.
ABC News
