MOVIE NEWS – Kevin Spacey’s legal team has put together a surprising list of witnesses for the defence, including Anthony Rapp’s brother – who in turn testified about how difficult it is for him to watch Spacey’s films.

Recently, a jury in Manhattan federal court heard shocking sexual allegations made against actor Anthony Rapp and his witnesses against Kevin Spacey. Rapp paused several times as he told jurors about an incident in 1986 when Spacey lifted him up “like a groom carrying a bride over the threshold” before climbing on top of him. At the time, the Rent star was 14, while Spacey was 26 or 27. In the $40 million trial against Spacey, which will last two weeks, it will be up to the jury to decide whether the House of Cards actor is guilty of intentional infliction of bodily harm and emotional distress.

Spacey’s lawyers have argued that Rapp fabricated the allegations against their client out of jealousy.

They claim that Rapp, who is openly gay, was annoyed that his decision to come out of the closet limited his career opportunities. In his testimony, Rapp pushed back against this allegation, saying he never blamed his open gayness for the “dry period” of his professional life. He said he had spoken to several people about the Spacey affair during periods when he was “working very, very steadily“.

Kevin Space called surprising witnesses

John Barrowman, best known for his roles in Doctor Who and the Torchwood series, will be critical in Spacey’s defence against Rapp’s accusations, as he was with them on the night they allegedly first hung out. Barrowman is expected to say that he and Spacey were flirting that night, not Rapp. Adam Vary is expected to be controversial on the witness stand as the journalist who wrote the 2017 Buzzfeed article in which Rapp first detailed the allegations against Spacey. The actor’s legal team previously noted that although Vary is Rapp’s friend, he did not disclose their relationship in the article.

Several people are expected to be called to the witness stand in support of their case, from a former Rent co-star to several other actors to Rapp’s own playwright brother, Adam Rapp.

Spacey’s manager Evan Lowenstein is also expected to spend time on the witness stand. Spacey’s lawyers have told the court that Lowenstein is acting as an “investigator” in their case and is “indispensable” as they move forward towards a presentation to the jury. In a surprise move, the defence is also expected to subpoena Adam Rapp, the 57-year-old playwright, producer and older brother of Anthony Rapp. It is not yet known what he will be asked. Other witnesses expected to be called by the defence include Rapp’s Rent co-star Tracie Thomas and 78-year-old actress Kathe Green. However, it is unclear what she will add to Spacey’s case, especially as she has not acted or been involved in a production for decades.

Unwatchable Kevin Spacey movies

While watching the 1988 film Working Girl, Rapp was surprised to see his attacker on screen and told the court:

“Kevin Spacey came on the screen, and it was as if someone had poked me with a cattle prod. I felt like I jumped out of my seat.”

That didn’t stop the Star Trek: Discovery actor from watching Spacey’s later films. On the witness stand, he mentioned that he watched The Usual Suspects, Glengarry Glen Ross, L.A. Confidential and Seven because he felt it was part of his job as an actor to watch them. That changed with American Beauty, which became the last film Spacey ever saw. In the movie, for which Spacey received his second Academy Award, he plays Lester Burnham, a married father who becomes involved in a sexual relationship with his daughter’s best friend, a teenage girl. For Rapp, it was too close to everything he was experiencing and proved “difficult” and “unpleasantly familiar.”

Source: The Daily Beast