Kevin Spacey must pay nearly $31 million in a defamation suit brought by the maker of the Netflix series “House of Cards,” who accused the actor of sexually assaulting a teen boy in an incident that took place more than a decade ago.
Frank Pugliese, a lawyer for Media Rights Capital, said that since Spacey was a movie star before “House of Cards,” MRC feared a similar episode to what occurred in 1992.
The case marks Spacey’s first and only public misconduct claim, according to USA Today.
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“MRC was afraid of Kevin Spacey, what would befall MRC, what would happen to ‘House of Cards’ and what would happen to Netflix,” Pugliese said.
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Spacey’s lawyer said in court documents that Spacey is protected from defamation claims because he gave conflicting statements about what happened, according to The New York Times.
In 2008, when the alleged incident occurred, Spacey was 23 years old and the teen was 14, the paper said.
MRC said in its suit that Spacey made claims in 2013 that he bought and gave the underage boy alcohol and was “choking him” when he was later seen in “a sexual position with him.”
MRC’s lawsuit said that when it was alerted to Spacey’s accusations, the actor “cleared” MRC of responsibility.
APA, the agency representing Spacey, filed a legal response last July in which it stated it fired Spacey on Nov. 29, 2017.
MRC’s claim comes one month after Spacey’s home was burglarized at night, prompting investigators to examine his finances.
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