American actor Kevin Spacey, who talks about “consensual” relationships, only admits having sometimes “misread the signals”, and denounces the “weak” prosecution case.
American actor Kevin Spacey on Friday dismissed the sexual assault charges for which he is on trial in London, citing relationships “agreed” and denouncing the “weak” prosecution case.
The 63-year-old star, who has been 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.
“Consensual Interactions”
The most serious charge against the two-time Oscar winner for his roles in American Beauty And Usual Suspects, is that of a man who accuses her of having “dope” and having sex with him while he was asleep.
“He didn’t fall asleep and I didn’t perform a sexual act on him while he slept, despite what he shockingly accused me of”replied Kevin Spacey on Friday, dressed like the day before in 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”, replied the prosecutor. “And He’s Weak” replied the actor tit for tat.
Kevin Spacey also mentioned “consensual interactions” with a second plaintiff, who accuses her of sexually assaulting him while he was driving. “He grabbed me so hard (the private parts) that I almost ran off the road”explained the complainant during his interrogation.
“Misread the signals”
“It was sweet (…) and it was in my romantic spirit”Kevin Spacey replied on Thursday, describing himself as a “big flirty” but denying any behavior “violent”, “aggressive” Or “sore”.
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 him very aggressively. But for Kevin Spacey, this plaintiff “made up his story from beginning to end”.
“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 Kevin Spacey of kissing him twice in the neck and grabbing his crotch, the actor said on Friday that he had “misread the signals” but said he did not remember assaulting him.
“We had all been drinking a lot and I think millions of people know what it’s like to make advances to someone, and realize that you’ve misread the signals (…) It happens”. “You say (I) took his crotch. I don’t accept that’s what happened”he said.
“Golden Boy”
The four plaintiffs who testified during the first weeks of the trial at Southwark Crown Court in London also spoke of the difficulties in denouncing the behavior of a star as influential as Kevin Spacey. None of them had denounced the actor before the start of the #MeToo movement in 2017.
For prosecutor Christine Agnew, the actor was “the golden boy of the London theater world” at the time and he was “unlikely” that the alleged victims speak “because of who he was”.
“I used the position I was in gratefully to help others, create art and try to bring the Old Vic back to what it once was”, replied Kevin Spacey. And he added that he “didn’t have a magic wand to wave every time I wanted someone to sleep with me”.
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.