Kevin Spacey ‘flirted with teenage John Barrowman and took him home’, court hears
Disgraced actor Kevin Spacey reportedly flirted with John Barrowman in 1986 when he was 19, according to a US court hearing.
A Manhattan court heard Barrowman had met with Spacey, who invited both him and plaintiff Anthony Rapp for dinner after they were introduced.
Rapp, who filed a sexual abuse civil lawsuit against Spacey that commenced on Tuesday (6 October), said he and Barrowman had met the House of Cards actor backstage at a New York theatre.
The trio reportedly went for dinner together and proceeded to go to a nightclub. When asked by defence lawyer Jennifer Keller if he’d been “seen as a tag-along”, Rapp replied, “no”.
Kevin Spacey leaves the New York Federal Court following his trial in New York. (Getty/Eren Abdullahogullari)
The trio then allegedly returned to Spacey’s apartment where both he and Barrowman had laid on the bed, according to a private deposition by the Torchwood star.
Keller then said her client’s attention had been on Barrowman throughout the evening and that “nothing inappropriate” had happened, nor had Spacey “offered [Rapp] any alcohol”, which he accepted.
The Rent actor filed the lawsuit after accusing 63-year-old Spacey of intentionally inflicting emotional distress as well as assault and battery – all of which Spacey denies.
He told the court that he “never wanted a career like Kevin Spacey’s” and was “proud and grateful” for his own.
‘Affected’ in ways that haven’t been described
“Kevin Spacey is a fantastic actor, no doubt about that,” Rapp’s attorney Peter Saghir told the court. “[But] every time Anthony hears Kevin Spacey’s name, he’s back in that apartment in 1986.”
Saghir then explained the alleged encounter, where an allegedly drunk Spacey lifted Rapp “up like a groom would a bride over the threshold” and “placed the full weight of his body on Anthony”, who then allegedly managed to escape and leave the apartment.
“This violation has affected Anthony in specific ways that haven’t been fully described,” Saghir continued.
Rapp has continually claimed that he suffers from PTSD due to the alleged incident, but still feels it is his “duty” to watch Kevin Spacey’s work as an actor.
“I’m an actor and I love films – these films were acclaimed and award-winning,” he said.
“I felt it was part of my job to see them, I knew he was in them so I could prepare myself.”
