Hours after Star Trek: Discovery actor Anthony Rapp accused Kevin Spacey of unwanted sexual advances in the 1980s, sources say that Netflix’s House of Cards, which features Spacey in a lead role, will come to an end after its upcoming sixth season.
In a joint statement to Deadline, Netflix and production company Media Rights Capital said the two companies “are deeply troubled by last night’s news concerning Kevin Spacey.” The statement continued: “In response to last night’s revelations, executives from both of our companies arrived in Baltimore this afternoon to meet with our cast and crew to ensure that they continue to feel safe and supported. As previously scheduled, Kevin Spacey is not working on set at this time.”
BuzzFeed recently published Rapp’s claims that in 1986, when he and Spacey were both appearing in Broadway shows, Spacey, who was 26, invited the then-14-year-old Rapp to a party at his apartment. At the end of the night, a drunk Spacey approached Rapp in his bedroom, then allegedly made an unwanted sexual advance that Rapp kept to himself for decades.
Soon after the story was published, Spacey responded with this tweet, apologizing for his behavior and and also coming out as gay.
— Kevin Spacey (@KevinSpacey) October 30, 2017
Spacey’s choice to come out after being accused of sexual harassment has been heavily criticized by many as an inappropriate distraction tactic and for linking homosexuality with pedophilia.
In a statement to People George Takei expressed his thoughts on the issue “When power is used in a non-consensual situation, it is a wrong. For Anthony Rapp, he has had to live with the memory of this experience of decades ago. For Kevin Spacey, who claims not to remember the incident, he was the older, dominant one who had his way,”
“Men who improperly harass or assault do not do so because they are gay or straight – that is a deflection. They do so because they have the power, and they chose to abuse it,” he continued.
Netflix also announced on Monday that though House of Cards would be ending after its 6th season, fans can anticipate a House of Cards spinoff. Netflix hasn’t revealed what the new series will look like, minus the fact that the drama will remain in the same universe as the original.
