Barbados Times

Barbados, Caribbean & World News
Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Kevin Spacey denies Anthony Rapp abuse claim, regrets apology

Kevin Spacey denies Anthony Rapp abuse claim, regrets apology

Kevin Spacey said in court on Monday that he regretted apologizing to actor Anthony Rapp over claims that the Oscar winner made an unwanted sexual advance in 1986 when Rapp was 14.
Rapp, now 50, sued Spacey in 2020 for battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and testified earlier this month that an intoxicated Spacey - then 26 and acting on Broadway - climbed on top of him at a party at his Manhattan apartment. Rapp, at the start of his own Broadway career at the time, said he was able to "swerve my way out" but that the experience scarred him.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan earlier on Monday dismissed Rapp's emotional distress claim, but allowed the battery claim to stand.

Spacey took the stand in his own defense in Manhattan federal court and said the allegation was "not true," and that he had never been alone with Rapp. He testified that he was "shocked" when Rapp went public with his claim in a 2017 article in Buzzfeed.

Following the article, Spacey released a statement in which he came out as gay and apologized to Rapp for any inappropriate behavior.

On Monday, Spacey said he now regrets his apology.

"I have learned a lesson, which is never apologize for something you didn't do," Spacey said. "I regret my entire statement," he added.

Spacey broke down in tears, saying that he wanted to do something positive by coming out but was viewed as trying to change the subject from Rapp's abuse claim

"I would never have done anything to hurt the gay community," he said. "I'm deeply sorry."

Spacey is scheduled to be cross-examined when the trial resumes on Tuesday.

Rapp, who starred in the Broadway musical "Rent," sued Spacey in November 2020, seeking $40 million in damages.

Last week, Spacey's lawyer challenged Rapp's memory of the 1986 incident during cross-examination, questioning him on why he described the encounter as having occurred in a bedroom when Spacey lived in a studio at the time.

Spacey won Oscars for performances in "American Beauty" and "The Usual Suspects," but his career largely ended after more than 20 men accused him of sexual misconduct.

Netflix (NFLX.O) dropped him from its political drama series "House of Cards" and Christopher Plummer replaced him in the role of J. Paul Getty in "All the Money in the World" weeks before the movie's scheduled release in 2017.

Spacey faces a criminal trial in London next year after pleading not guilty to five sex offense charges over alleged assaults between 2005 and 2013.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Barbados Times
0:00
0:00
Close
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Italian Court's Controversial Ruling on Sexual Harassment Ignites Uproar
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
BBC Personalities Rebuke Accusations Amidst Scandal Involving Teen Exploitation
A Swift Disappointment: Why Is Taylor Swift Bypassing Canada on Her Global Tour?
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
Unilever Plummets in a $2.5 Billion Free Fall, to begin with: A Reckoning for Misuse of Corporate Power Against National Interest
Beyond the Blame Game: The Need for Nuanced Perspectives on America's Complex Reality
Twitter Targets Meta: A Tangle of Trade Secrets and Copycat Culture
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
×