A man who accused Kevin Spacy of sexual assault has died.
The anonymous massage therapist, known as “John Doe” in court records, died sometime before Sept. 11, Spacey’s lawyers were informed last week. The man had accused Spacey of assaulting him during a massage.
The celebrated House of Cards actor became a pariah overnight amid the #MeToo movement after several men accused him of sexual misconduct beginning in 2017. Spacey has since been keeping a low-profile as he faces legal battles.
Plaintiff in assault case dies
The late masseuse accused Spacey of sexual misconduct that alleged occurred during a massage session in Malibu, California three years ago. The suit was filed in September 2018, but Spacey’s lawyers sought to dismiss it on account of the accuser’s anonymity.
But the judge allowed the civil case to move forward in May, and by August, a trial date had been chosen. However, Spacey’s counsel was told on Sept. 11 that the accuser had recently died. Spacey’s team filed a “notice of statement noting plaintiff’s death” in the case Tuesday.
“No further information or details have been given to Mr. Fowler’s counsel, but Plaintiff’s counsel stated they intended to notify the Court with additional information at an appropriate time in the future,” the filing said, referring to Spacey by his real name, Kevin Fowler.
The therapist had claimed in the lawsuit that Spacey twice grabbed his hands and guided them towards his genitals. Spacey was also accused of trying to forcibly kiss him and fondle the accuser’s genitals, and the man said that Spacey asked if he could perform oral sex on him.
The famed actor isn’t out of the woods yet, as the masseuse’s heirs have 90 days to substitute his estate as the plaintiff in the case, according to the notice filed by Spacey’s legal team. The accuser’s lawyer called the notice from Spacey’s lawyers “unnecessary and contemptible,” noting that “Mr Doe’s family must now open his estate at the same time as planning a funeral and processing their grief.” The statement added that the accuser was a “dignified, kind, middle-aged man” who was left “traumatized” by the alleged assault.
Spacey keeps low profile
The American Beauty actor was seen as one of Hollywood’s very best before several men came out with allegations of assault and misconduct in the wake of #MeToo. Spacey was dropped by Netflix and written out of the final season of “House of Cards,” which was cancelled. He has been living in exile from Hollywood ever since.
The actor found some relief this summer when a solitary criminal case against him was dropped. Prosecutors in Massachusetts declined to pursue Spacey over sexual assault charges from an 18-year old man after the accuser refused to testify about a missing phone, which investigators said might have contained exculpatory evidence.
Accuser William Little’s mother had accused Spacey of plying her son with drinks and then forcing him to touch the actor’s genitals in Nantucket, Massachusetts in 2017.
Spacey released a bizarre video in late 2018 in which he presented himself as his House of Cards character, Frank Underwood. In the video, Spacey delivers a menacing monologue in which he denies the sexual assault allegations and bafflingly tells viewers that Frank Underwood is not dead.
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