Kevin Spacey found not guilty in UK sex crimes trial
A jury in London acquitted actor Kevin Spacey on charges of sexual assault Wednesday, his latest court victory after a series of men have accused him of misconduct.
During Spacey’s trial, which took four weeks, he had argued he was a “big flirt” but did not assault anyone.
Accusations in the trial included three men who said Spacey aggressively grabbed their crotches and another who said he woke up to the actor performing oral sex on him after going back to Spacey’s London apartment for beer.
The allegations span from 2001 to 2013, a period in which Spacey spent a good portion of his time as the artistic director for The Old Vic theater. The men who said Spacey assaulted them came forward after an American actor came out saying Spacey committed an act of sexual misconduct against him as the #MeToo movement rose in prominence in 2017.
British prosecutor Christine Agnew had described the former "House of Cards" star as a "bully" who preyed on men from behind a shield of fame.
“My world exploded,” Spacey testified. “There was a rush to judgment and before the first question was asked or answered I lost my job, I lost my reputation, I lost everything in a matter of days.”
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Last year, he also emerged victorious in a $40 million sexual misconduct lawsuit brought against him by actor Anthony Rapp.
Earlier this month, Spacey predicted that he'd soon be working again after an acquittal in the U.K. trial.
"I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges," he told German newspaper Die Zeit.
—The Associated Press contributed to this report.