(London) American actor Kevin Spacey dismissed the sexual assault charges for which he is on trial in London on Friday, citing “consensual” relationships and denouncing the “weak” prosecution case.
The 63-year-old star, on trial since late June, pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of sexual assault on four men between 2001 and 2013, including from 2004 when he was director of London’s Old Vic theatre.
The most serious accusation against the actor, twice Oscar winner for his roles in American Beauty And Usual Suspectsis that of a man who accuses her of having “drugged” him and of having had sexual activity with him while he was asleep.
“He did not fall asleep and I did not perform a sexual act on him while he slept, despite what he shockingly accused me of,” Kevin Spacey replied on Friday, dressed as the day before. a dark suit.
“I don’t know who made the first move, but we were consensually in a romantic situation,” he added.
When prosecutor Christine Agnew suggested the plaintiff was asleep, Kevin Spacey replied, “That’s your theory.”
“It’s the prosecution’s case,” retorted the prosecutor.
“And he’s weak,” the actor replied tit for tat.
” golden boy »
None of the four plaintiffs who gave evidence in the first weeks of the trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court had denounced the actor before the #metoo movement started in 2017.
For prosecutor Christine Agnew, the actor was at the time “the”golden boy‘from the theater world in London’ and the alleged victims were ‘unlikely’ to speak out ‘because of who he was’.
“I used the position I was in gratefully to help others, to create art,” Mr Spacey fired back. And he added that he “didn’t have a magic wand to wave every time (he) wanted someone to sleep with (him).”
When the prosecutor asked him if he had had sex to feel less alone, he replied: “welcome to life, yes”, causing some laughter in the court.
But according to him, “if (the alleged victims) went further than they wanted […], they didn’t let me know. »
“Money, Money and Money”
Kevin Spacey also spoke of “consensual interactions” with a second plaintiff, who accuses him of having sexually assaulted him, grabbing his private parts “so hard” while he was driving.
“It was sweet […] and it was in my romantic mind,” Mr. Spacey replied on Thursday, describing himself as a “big flirty” but denying any “violent”, “aggressive” or “painful” behavior.
Kevin Spacey, who appears free, also denies the charges of two other alleged victims.
One of them accuses him of grabbing her crotch “like a cobra” and talking to her very aggressively. But for Kevin Spacey, this plaintiff “made up his story from start to finish”.
“I don’t accept any word that comes out of his mouth,” he said on Friday. When the prosecutor asked him why the alleged victim would have lied, Kevin Spacey replied: “money, money and more money”.
Regarding the fourth plaintiff who accuses Mr Spacey of kissing him twice in the neck and grabbing his crotch, the actor said on Friday he had “misread the signals”, but said he did not don’t remember attacking him.
“We had all been drinking a lot and I think millions of people know what it’s like to make a pass at someone and realize you’ve misread the signals. […] It happens “.
“You say (I) took his crotch. I do not accept that this is what happened,” he said.
The trial of the American actor should last a month.
Kevin Spacey is notably accused of seven sexual assaults and two non-consensual sexual activities, including one with penetration. He faces up to life in prison.