The third alleged victim of the “very arrogant” Kevin Spacey told of how he was grabbed “like a cobra” in a West End theatre while hearing hardcore comments from the actor, a court heard.
A jury heard the Hollywood star “smelled of booze” before allegedly grabbing the complainant, who told police he responded to the actor by saying, “I’m not like that”.
The man told an officer he remembered “freezing and pushing his arm away” when Spacey allegedly assaulted him, describing it as a “bizarre and horrible experience”.
Southwark Crown Court played footage of the police interview with the alleged victim on Wednesday, where he claimed Spacey had taken “no responsibility” for the incident, saying: “He just said ‘I’m gay’.”
Describing the alleged assault, the complainant said, “he was like a cobra and grabbed with such force it was excruciating” and “like a cobra coming out and getting hold”.
Describing his first impressions of the actor, the man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said: “My opinion when he arrived was he smelled of booze. He looked dishevelled. He did not look like he had been to sleep.”
Accuser Testifies About ‘Bizarre and Horrible Experience’
The man told police he was “taken aback” by the alleged crude comments made by the star, claiming: “It was very aggressive. I have never had anyone talk to me in that way.”
“It was all getting hardcore,” he added, speaking about Spacey’s alleged comments.
He continued: “This conversation went on. I was laughing but, on the inside, feeling very uncomfortable.
“I was feeling very shocked. It was not what I was expecting. I thought it would stop.”
The man told the officer the alleged comments made him “feel so low” and “it was offensive, what he was saying”.
He said: “My first impression is that he seemed very arrogant. I remember he looked me up and down and looked at my crotch region.
“He did not respond to me particularly politely.”
Man Shares Details of his Traumatic Encounter with Kevin Spacey
Asked why he had come forward to police, the alleged victim said it was as if he had “allowed somebody, in a way, to denigrate me”.
He told the police: “I hope he does the right thing – if he apologises, then maybe I won’t want him to go to court.
“He took no responsibility; he just said, ‘I’m gay’. He’s still not hearing what he did was wrong – that spurred me on a bit.”
The complainant initially put his allegations “in a box” because the Oscar-winning actor was seen as a “golden boy”.
He said: “He was a huge success. I put it in a box and continued with my life, but he had a detrimental effect on my life and business.
“It is like telling tales out of school, in a way.”
The 63-year-old actor has been described by the prosecution as a “sexual bully” as he stands trial accused of sex offences against four men between 2001 and 2013.
The defendant pleaded not guilty in January to three counts of indecent strike, three counts of sexual assault and one count of creating a person to engage in sexual venture without consent.
The two-time Academy Award winner also previously denied four charges of sexual thump and one count of causing a person to capture in penetrative sexual activity without consent.
Accuser Faces Tough Questions in Kevin Spacey Trial
In an interview with BuzzFeed News, Anthony Rapp, best known for his role in the musical “Rent,” alleged that in 1986, when he was 14, Mr Spacey picked him up, placed him on a bed and lay down on top of him, making a “sexual advance.”
Mr Rapp told the publication that the encounter occurred when both actors were in Broadway shows and that Mr Spacey, then 26, invited him to a gathering at his Manhattan apartment. Mr Rapp told BuzzFeed he could “squirm” away and leave.
On Thursday, a federal jury found Mr Spacey not liable for battery.
Mr Spacey, now 63, initially released a statement saying he did not recall the encounter that Mr Rapp, now 50, had described, saying, “But if I did behave then as he recounts, I owe him the sincerest apols for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behaviour.” However, Mr Spacey began vehemently denying that the incident occurred after Mr Rapp sued him in 2020, accusing him of assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The civil trial began Oct. 6 in the Federal District Court in Manhattan.
Judge Lewis A. Kaplan dismissed the assault claim before the trial and dismissed the emotional distress claim on Monday after Mr Rapp’s side presented its case. Mr Rapp testified that he was upset whenever Mr Spacey appeared onscreen and that the encounter in 1986 was the most traumatic event of his life.
Mr Spacey spent more than six hours on the witness stand. He testified on Monday that he released the public apology because of bad advice from his publicists, not because the encounter with Mr Rapp had occurred. On Tuesday, under cross-examination, Mr Spacey admitted that he had lied when he wrote in his public statement that he respected and admired Mr Rapp.
Public Outrage Grows as Accuser’s Story Captivates the Courtroom
The defence rested its case on Wednesday and asked the judge to reinstruct the jury not to consider two instances when Mr Rapp referred to allegations against Mr Spacey by others. The judge also said he could give no guidance or parameters regarding the damages the jury could award Mr Rapp.
The jury deliberated for less than 90 minutes on Thursday afternoon following closing arguments from both sides. One juror was dismissed for health reasons, so an 11-person jury decided on the battery claim.
