As the fallout from Anthony Rapp’s story continues, eight members of the House of Cards production crew have come forward to accuse Kevin Spacey of “predatory” behavior, with one anonymous employee claiming they were sexually assaulted by the Frank Underwood actor while filming season 1.
CNN broke the news late last night, when it was confirmed that Media Rights Capital (MRC), the production company behind Netflix’s political flagship, received a sexual assault complaint against Spacey in 2012, just as House of Cards was beginning to take shape.
“Immediate action” was taken, and MRC swiftly resolved the situation without any notable ramifications – that we know of, mind you. But in a follow-up report, series creator and erstwhile showrunner Beau Willimon has stressed that he had no knowledge of the 2012 incident that prompted an investigation into Spacey’s dubious behavior.
I feel awful for the people who were wronged while working for House of Cards. The production did not inform me of the incident that occurred in Season One regarding Kevin Spacey or of any action taken as a result. I am heartsick that anyone on the crew had to endure this sort of behavior. Clearly, we as an industry, particularly those in a position of power, myself included, need to be more perceptive and proactive. We also need to do a better job at empowering and supporting our colleagues who come forward.
And though it may seem odd that Willimon was unaware of such allegations, Deadline notes that the creator mainly focused on writing scripts for House of Cards‘ opening season, as was therefore not present for most of the shoot. Perhaps the bigger question is why MRC chose to withhold information from Willimon at the time of the incident.
The scandal that has engulfed Kevin Spacey – and, by effect, House of Cards – will continue to fester for some time, and until those guilty are brought to justice, we can only hope this torrent of allegations helps expose other sexual predators working within the industry.
