Kevin Spacey released a statement coming out as a gay man on Sunday, October 29, after Star Trek: Discovery star Anthony Rapp claimed he made a pass at him as a teenager.
Rapp, 46, told BuzzFeed News in a story posted online on Sunday that he and Spacey met in 1986, when they were both appearing on Broadway in separate shows. Spacey was 26; Rapp was 14 at the time.
One night, Spacey invited Rapp to his apartment for a party but the teen ended up bored and watching TV in the Tony winner’s bedroom.
He then realized that everyone had left the apartment and found Spacey standing at the bedroom door, apparently drunk.
“He picked me up like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold,” Rapp, who went on to star in Rent, told BuzzFeed. “But I don’t, like, squirm away initially, because I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ And then he lays down on top of me.”
“He was trying to seduce me,” Rapp continued. “I don’t know if I would have used that language. But I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually.”
After pushing Spacey off, he went into the bathroom and closed the door.
“I was like, ‘What is happening?’ I saw on the counter next to the sink a picture of him having his arm around a man. So I think on some level I was like, ‘Oh. He’s gay. I guess,'” the New York native added. “Then I opened the door, and I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to go home now.’ He followed me to the front door of the apartment, and as I opened the door to leave, he was leaning on the front door[frame]. And he was like, ‘Are you sure you wanna go?’ I said, ‘Yes, good night,’ and then I did leave.”
Rapp, who has been out publicly since 1992, told BuzzFeed that now, years later, his stomach churns when he sees the Oscar winner.
“I still to this day can’t wrap my head around so many aspects of it,” he said, explaining that he had decided to come forward after accusations of sexual assault and harassment against film producer Harvey Weinstein made headlines. “I’m hopeful that this can make a difference,” he added.
Spacey, whose sexuality has been speculated about in the press over the years, took to Twitter on Sunday night to respond to Rapp’s story.
— Kevin Spacey (@KevinSpacey) October 30, 2017
“I have a lot of respect and admiration for Anthony Rapp as an actor,” Spacey, now 58, wrote. “I’m beyond horrified to hear his story. I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave as he described, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years.”
“This story has encouraged me to address other things about my life,” he continued. “I know that there are other stories out there about me and that some have been fueled by the fact that I have been so protective of my privacy. As those closest to me know, in my life I have had romantic relationships with both men and women. I have loved and had romantic encounters with men throughout my life, and I choose now to live as a gay man. I want to deal with this honestly and openly and that starts with examining my own behavior.”
