Summary

Despite legal acquittals,
Spacey Unmasked
sheds light on disturbing patterns of abuse spanning decades.
Spacey’s alleged abusive tendencies are rooted in self-hatred over being gay, impacting many lives emotionally.
Spacey’s power and fame allowed him to escape consequences for years, leaving a trail of victims feeling traumatized.

CW: The following article contains graphic descriptions of and discussions about sexual harassment and assault.

Several years after numerous accusations of sexual harassment turned him into a Hollywood pariah, Kevin Spacey is back in the limelight. And while there are still supporters of his who believe he deserves a return to the industry, a new docuseries about him, which recently debuted on Channel 4 in the UK and on Max in the US, may only further stain his legacy. The series, Spacey Unmasked, takes a closer look behind the curtain at the disgraced actor, exploring decades of abuse and 10 separate allegations of misconduct.

The series’ release has already seen much pushback, notably from Spacey, who has strongly denied the allegations. As the documentary itself makes clear, Spacey has technically been acquitted in legal cases in both the US and the UK. Yet, the series illustrates a disturbing pattern over his decades-long career, with several individual stories that overlap to an uncanny degree, that it becomes increasingly difficult to think of Spacey as anything but guilty.

Spacey Unmasked Delves Into the Actor’s Disturbing Past

One of the most surprising interview subjects in Spacey Unmasked is the actor’s older brother, Randall Fowler, who goes in-depth about the childhood trauma they both faced. Their father, Thomas Fowler, was not only physically and sexually abusive towards Randall (who would go out of his way to protect Kevin), he was also a self-proclaimed neo-Nazi.

Thomas was also a Holocaust denier and would host frequent Nazi meetings in his home, with a flag proudly displayed on the walls. According to Randy, Kevin Spacey would turn to acting as a way to channel the anger and powerlessness he felt. As early as his final years in high school, one of the interviewees alleges, he was already making unwanted advances. But the documentary alleges there was another factor that made his anger manifest as abuse – it was the shame he felt at being gay.

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Throughout most of his career, there was widespread tabloid speculation that Kevin Spacey was gay, even though he consistently denied it for years. He finally came out in 2017, on the same day that the first sexual assault allegation, made by Rent’s Anthony Rapp, was dropped. The backlash from the LGBTQ+ community was immediate, and gay actors like Billy Eichner and Zachary Quinto slammed him for using his coming out to deflect from severe allegations and for (intentionally or not) implying a connection between homosexuality and child abuse.

But Spacey Unmasked implies that much of the actor’s abusive tendencies were rooted in self-hatred he held over being gay and that his repressed anger would manifest in destructive ways. One of the interviewees recalled an incident in which he tried to distance himself from the actor by insisting that he was heterosexual and that Spacey exploded at him for implying that he was attracted to men. Another subject detailed a meeting at a nightclub, where Spacey openly mocked a gay couple, explaining, “It was kind of my first indication that maybe he was uncomfortable in his own skin… I think it speaks volumes about how he feels about his own sexuality. It’s a part of him that he doesn’t like.”

Kevin Spacey Held Immense Power and Could Escape Consequences

Obviously, the single biggest factor that helped Kevin Spacey escape consequences for so long was his star power; he had a meteoric rise in the ‘90s, winning two acting Oscars in just five years, and he was regularly hailed as one of the best in his profession. The interviewees in Spacey Unmasked elaborate that this is part of what kept them from speaking up. Many of them were aspiring actors and believed Spacey could be a mentor to him, and when he harassed or assaulted them, they blamed themselves out of fear that they’d displeased him. Scott, one of the subjects, detailed, “If you don’t pay the toll – your sexual favors, you’ll have a decent career, but your name won’t be in lights.”

Shortly after winning a second Oscar for American Beauty (which now feels like an uncomfortable watch), Spacey made a surprising career move by relocating to London, where he was appointed the new artistic director at the Old Vic Theatre Company. Here, his alleged pattern of assault continued. Danny, a former usher at the venue, recalled that as he took a seat one night, the actor wedged himself into a tight space, forcing his groin in front of his face. And Ruari, an actor at the Company, detailed acting in one of Spacey’s shows, having received a signed poster from him on opening night before later being assaulted by him at a party later in the evening.

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Things only worsened when Spacey enjoyed a career resurgence in the 2010s with his starring role in House of Cards. Evelyn, a production assistant on the show, explained, “Kevin’s behavior was certainly well-known. It was like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s the thing, that’s what happens here.’” She also noted that she and another female assistant were hired specifically to keep Spacey in proximity. Nonetheless, several harassment complaints were filed throughout his time on the show, including from one of the interviewees, Daniel, who was originally a background extra. When he got a small speaking role in one episode, Spacey secretly walked him off-set and used his finger to “tickle” him below his zipper.

Consequences finally came for Spacey when Anthony Rapp opened up about his alleged abuse, inspired by the fledgling MeToo movement. Within weeks, at least eight separate allegations from the House of Cards set alone came out, and Netflix quickly fired the star of their show. As more and more alleged victims came forward, Spacey retreated from the public eye, only occasionally resurfacing in annual YouTube videos to reprise his role as Frank Underwood (last year, he did one with Tucker Carlson). Nonetheless, in 2022, a jury overseeing Rapp’s lawsuit found the actor not liable for all charges, and last year, a UK jury found him not guilty of nine charges.

Spacey Unmasked Is a Strong Case Against the Once-Beloved Actor

All the interviewees were openly devastated by the verdicts. However, most of them note that even if Spacey’s behavior wasn’t technically illegal, it was still emotionally abusive and left them feeling traumatized and disempowered. After hearing 10 separate men (all but one of whom have never previously spoken out) allege such similar stories and patterns of abusive behavior, it becomes increasingly difficult not to believe them.

Even though Spacey isn’t technically guilty beyond all reasonable doubt in the eyes of the law, and he seems to be attempting a comeback, his reputation is still in tatters, and based on what Spacey Unmasked details, that deservedly doesn’t seem likely to change anytime soon. Spacey Unmasked is streaming now on Max.