London (AFP) – A new civil claim alleging sexual abuse against Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey was filed on Wednesday at London’s High Court, the legal team representing the accuser confirmed to AFP. Actor Ruari Cannon is suing Spacey, 65, and two organisations connected to London’s Old Vic Theatre, where the actor was artistic director between 2003 and 2015, the claimant’s legal firm Fieldfisher confirmed to AFP.
Details of the allegations have not yet been published. Spacey was in 2023 found not guilty of several criminal sexual charges alleged by four men. The star of “American Beauty” and drama series “House of Cards” was acquitted by majority verdicts in London following a trial lasting several weeks. One of the accusers in the criminal trial has also launched civil action against Spacey. The claim filed on Wednesday does not relate to any of the accusers involved in the criminal trial.
Spacey won the best supporting actor Oscar for 1996 film “The Usual Suspects” and best actor in 2000 for “American Beauty”. But his once-stellar career has been halted by the various allegations of sexual offences, which first emerged in 2017 as part of the nascent #MeToo movement, and which he has always denied. The 2023 acquittal followed a New York court in 2022 dismissing a $40 million civil sexual misconduct lawsuit brought against him.
© 2024 AFP
