Kevin Spacey, the Oscar-winning actor, has denied new allegations of inappropriate behaviour from men who will feature in a documentary on British television that is due to be released next week.
In an online interview with journalist Dan Wootton, Spacey said he has never done anything illegal and admitted that he has struggled to get back to work after being acquitted last year of criminal charges in a London court.
“I can’t go through this again, allowing myself to be baselessly attacked without defending myself,” he said in the interview entitled Kevin Spacey: Right Of Reply which was aired late Friday (Saturday in Australia) on Wootton’s YouTube channel.
READ MORE: Why one of the world’s most well-known voices is rarely heard live
Last July, a London jury acquitted Spacey on sexual assault charges stemming from allegations by four men dating back 20 years. The court victory was his second since he saw off a $US40 million (approx. $60.5 million) lawsuit in 2022 in New York brought by Star Trek: Discovery actor Anthony Rapp.
The documentary Spacey Unmasked is set to be aired on May 6 and 7 on Channel 4 in Britain and streamed on Max in the United States.
The documentary is said to feature testimony from men regarding events between 1976 and 2013, the actor revealed during the interview.
“I take full responsibility for my past behaviour and my actions, but I cannot and will not take responsibility or apologise to anyone who’s made up stuff about me or exaggerated stories about me,” said Spacey, who won Academy Awards for The Usual Suspects and American Beauty.
For a daily dose of 9Honey, subscribe to our newsletter here
“I’ve never told someone that if they give me sexual favours, then I will help them out with their career, never,” he added.
Spacey, who served as artistic director of the Old Vic Theatre in London from 2004 to 2015, again admitted that he was a “flirt” with men in their 20s and that he made “clumsy” passes at times.
“I’ve clearly hooked up with some men, who thought they might get ahead in their careers by having a relationship with me,” he said.
“But there was no conversation with me, it was all part of their plan, a plan that was always destined to fail, because I wasn’t in on the deal.”
READ MORE: The tennis photo that confirmed iconic Aussie romance
The actor also claimed on X, formerly Twitter, that he had “repeatedly requested” that Channel 4 give him more than seven days to respond to the allegations made about him in their documentary.
Spacey said the broadcaster refused “on the basis that they feel that asking for a response in [seven] days to new, anonymised and non-specific allegations is a ‘fair opportunity’ for me to refute any allegations made against me.”
“Each time I have been given the time and a proper forum to defend myself, the allegations have failed under scrutiny and I have been exonerated,” he added.
FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in celebrity, lifestyle and opinion via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.
Spacey said he has struggled to get back to work after being acquitted of all criminal charges, describing his experience as a “life sentence.”
His acting career has been adversely affected since 2017 when he was first publicly accused of inappropriate behaviour at the beginning of the #MeToo movement. He then lost his lead role as Frank Underwood in the Netflix drama House of Cards.
Channel 4 has been contacted for comment.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit their website. In an emergency, call 000.