‘House of Cards’ producers lose strange Kevin Spacey sex addicition lawsuit
The producers of the series House of Cards have lost an insurance trial over a $29 million production cost incurred when actor Kevin Spacey was fired in 2017.
The producers, Media Rights Capital, were arguing that the loss should have been covered under Spacey’s cast insurance policy, which would pay out if Spacey couldn’t work due to sickness.
Media Rights Capital’s lawyers argued that this was the case as Spacey was suffering from sex addiction. After he left the show, Spacey went to get treatment at The Meadows, an Arizona facility that deals with sex addiction.
After a trial in Santa Monica ran on for five weeks, a jury deemed that Spacey’s alleged sex addiction was not the primary reason for his departure from the show. As such, the insurer did not owe any money.
Instead, it was ruled that Spacey was dropped from the show because of bad publicity, as his departure occurred around the #MeToo movement in 2017, when reports of sexual misconduct on his behalf began to surface.
Spacey testified at the trial; the actor confirmed that he was diagnosed with sexually compulsive behaviour, but he did not believe the diagnosis was correct.
House of Cards was forced to scrap two episodes to make his abrupt departure from the project possible. Ultimately, the final season contained eight episodes in comparison to the 13 originally projected.
This isn’t the first time Media Rights Capital has sued the star; they won a $31 million arbitration award in 2021 after it was ruled that Spacey violated the company’s sexual harassment policy.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Spacey settled out of court with three men who launched a UK civil suit against the actor, who allegedly sexually assaulted all three men, before a London trial due later this year.
For help, advice or more information regarding sexual harassment, assault and rape in the UK, visit the Rape Crisis charity website. In the US, visit RAINN.
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