Kevin Spacey says he'll 'voluntarily' appear in UK court

Actor Kevin Spacey, whose alleged instances of sexual misconduct years or decades ago have gone unproven in criminal and civil courts, says he will voluntarily travel to the United Kingdom to answer charges of sexual assault authorized against him on May 26. 

After England's Crown Prosecution Service authorized police to charge him with four counts of sexual assault and one related charge, noting in a news release that this was "not … a finding of, or implication of, any guilt or criminal conduct" and that Spacey "has the right to a fair trial," the 62-year-old former "House of Cards" star issued a statement Tuesday to "Good Morning America."

"I very much appreciate the Crown Prosecution Service's statement in which they carefully reminded the media and the public that I am entitled to a fair trial, and innocent until proven otherwise," Spacey told the ABC morning show through a spokesperson. "While I am disappointed with their decision to move forward, I will voluntarily appear in the U.K. as soon as can be arranged and defend myself against these charges, which I am confident will prove my innocence."

Spacey, a two-time Academy Award winner, has not commented additionally on social media.

Appearing voluntarily rather than agreeing to extradition puts Spacey at additional risk, said Nick Vamos, a former head of extradition at the CPS. He told the U.K. newspaper The Guardian that if Spacey were formally extradited, only the charges agreed to by a U.S. court could be brought against him in the U.K. He added Spacey could be extradited within weeks if he agrees to extradition, and months if he contests it.

Beginning with an October 2017 accusation by "Star Trek: Discovery" star Anthony Rapp that Spacey made sexual advances toward him decades ago when Rapp was 14, at least 20 men have alleged sexual misconduct. Massachusetts prosecutors in 2019 dropped the only criminal case against Spacey after the accuser invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The accuser later dropped his lawsuit against Spacey. Los Angeles prosecutors did not file charges in two cases, one beyond the statute of limitations and one in which the accuser died.

In May 2021, a federal judge in New York dismissed a civil suit against Spacey after the accuser would not make his identity known to the court despite having done so with numerous individuals, Rapp and media members.

Spacey has maintained innocence, while issuing a public apology to Rapp in 2017, saying he did not remember the encounter from more than 30 years previous, "But if I did behave as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior … ."
Spacey's career slammed to a halt after Rapp's accusation, with Netflix dropping him from "House of Cards" and director Ridley Scott replacing him with Christopher Plummer in the film "All the Money in the World" (2017). Spacey did not appear in a film again until the Croatian docudrama "Bilo jednom u Hrvatskoj" / "Once Upon a Time in Croatia," was released in that country this May. He is involved in at least two projects — "Peter Five Eight" and "Gateway to the West" — that were being marketed at the recent Cannes Film Festival. Last year, he was announced to play a cameo role in Italian director Franco Nero's "L'uomo Che Disegnò Dio" / "The Man Who Drew God."