Three British men suing Oscar-winning American actor Kevin Spacey over alleged sexual assault have asked the High Court in London to allow them to challenge allegations made by seven others, including one dating back to the 1970s, in a civil trial later this year.
Three men claim that Spacey sexually assaulted them between 2000 and 2013. Two of them were complainants and testified at Spacey's criminal trial in London in 2023, at which he was found not guilty on all counts, Reuters reports.
The 66-year-old actor, one of Hollywood's biggest stars before he was first accused of sexual assault in 2017, has always denied sexual misconduct and says the events alleged in the lawsuit did not happen or were consensual. He did not attend today's hearing.
Prosecutors want to rely on the testimony of seven more men who claim Spacey sexually assaulted them at a civil trial in November - one in the late 1970s, two in the late 1990s and four in the 2000s and 2010s.
Prosecutors' lawyer, Elizabeth Ann Gumbel, told the court that testimony from other men showed that Spacey had a "propensity to sexually assault young men" and that in some cases he allegedly used his status as a famous actor to do so.
Spacey's lawyers argue that the additional allegations, which Spacey denies, do not show any pattern of behavior and are of limited or no relevance to the cases of the three plaintiffs.
Judge Christina Lambert is expected to rule later on whether seven additional statements can be included.
Old Vic reaches settlement with one plaintiff
One of the three plaintiffs suing Spacey also sued London's Old Vic theater, where Spacey had been artistic director since 2003.
The Old Vic has reached an agreement with the prosecutor and settled the part of the case that concerned the theater. The case against Spacey continues.
"This settlement has been reached without admission of liability, given the costs and impact on all parties of continuing litigation," the Old Vic said in a statement.
Spacey, who won Oscars for "American Beauty" and "The Usual Suspects," was fired from the TV series "House of Cards" and removed from the film "All the Money in the World" after he was first accused of sexual assault in 2017.
A civil lawsuit against Spacey in the United States was dismissed by a jury in 2022, and the following year he was tried in London on charges that he sexually assaulted four men in Britain.
He was acquitted of all nine counts of the indictment.
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