Kevin Spacey

2022 - 8 - 5

Post cover — Image courtesy of "Los Angeles Times"

Judge: Kevin Spacey must pay $31M to 'House of Cards' makers (Los Angeles Times)

The 'House of Cards' makers say they lost tens of millions of dollars after Kevin Spacey was fired from the show on allegations of sexual harassment.

His lawyer said he “strenuously denies” the allegations. They argued that the actor’s actions were not a substantial factor in the show’s losses. The ruling from the private arbitrator came after a legal fight of more than three years and an eight-day evidentiary hearing that was kept secret from the public, along with the rest of the dispute, until a panel of three more private arbitrators rejected Spacey’s appeal and upheld the decision in November.

Kevin Spacey must pay over $30 million to "House of Cards" makers ... (CBS News)

The ruling from Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mel Red Recana gives the force of law to the $30.9 award in favor of MRC and other companies that produced the ...

"It sounds like Kevin Spacey feels that there's still a possibility of rehabilitating himself in this country. They argued that the actor's actions were not a substantial factor in the show's losses. Last month, Spacey pleaded not guilty in London to charges of sexually assaulting three men a decade or more ago, when he was director of the Old Vic theater there.

Kevin Spacey ordered to pay nearly $31 million to House Of Cards ... (The A.V. Club)

The actor was removed from the Netflix series in 2017 amid allegations of misconduct.

Last month, Spacey formally pleaded not guilty to multiple charges in the U.K. ahead of a trial that will kick off next summer. In her ruling, she writes Spacey and his legal team “fail to demonstrate that this is even a close case” and “do not demonstrate that the damages award was so utterly irrational that it amounts to an arbitrary remaking of the parties’ contracts,” per court documents. A Los Angeles judge ruled on Thursday that Kevin Spacey must pay nearly $31 million in damages to the makers of House Of Cards over his firing, Entertainment Weekly reports.

Kevin Spacey ordered to pay 31m to House of Cards bosses (Crow River Media)

The 63-year-old actor was dropped from the Netflix series in 2017 after being accused of sexual misconduct by multiple young men and he was later sued by ...

Kevin Spacey Must Pay 'House of Cards' Producers $31 Million for ... (Vanity Fair)

A judge ruled that Spacey cost MRC and other companies millions after his alleged sexual misconduct forced his removal from the show's sixth season.

During the appeal process, Spacey’s legal team had argued that producers’ decision to write Frank Underwood out of the sixth season of House of Cards arrived prior to an internal investigation in which crew members spoke out against their client, according to AP. They also argued that Spacey’s activity did not play a major factor in the show’s monetary losses. The Oscar winner was fired from his show in 2017 amidst allegations of sexual harassment from crew members, accusations which Spacey has denied. According to the Associated Press, Los Angeles Superior Court judge Mel Red Recana ordered that Spacey must pay the sum to MRC and other production companies for those losses, upholding the ruling made against Spacey from a private arbitrator in November. Previously, an arbitrator determined that Spacey had violated his contract’s professional behavior requirements by “engaging certain conduct in connection with several crew members in each of the five seasons that he starred in and executive produced House of Cards,” according to a filing from MRC attorney Michael Kump requesting the approval.

Kevin Spacey ordered to pay $30 million to 'House of Cards' producers (The Washington Post)

Kevin Spacey also faces several charges of sexual assault in the United Kingdom.

Spacey has faced dozens of sexual assault allegations since 2017, some of which resulted in legal action. Spacey appealed the decision but was unsuccessful in the end, as another panel of arbitrators affirmed the original $30 million award in November 2021. “We are pleased with the court’s ruling,” Michael Kump, an attorney for MRC, said in a statement.