Aaron Chown/PA Wire
UPDATED 5:09 PM PT: The jury was sworn in for Kevin Spacey’s trial, with a judge telling the 14 people, “Don’t use your computers for anything related to this trial.”
The American beauty star, who is accused of sexual offenses against four men, stared intently at the nine male and three female jurors as they made their way to their seats. Two alternate jurors were also selected to be present during the opening of the indictment.
Mr Justice Wall told the 14-member jury that the case had “obviously” attracted a great deal of media attention, that “there is a need to avoid that coverage wherever possible”.
He warned them not to use computers to look for “anything related to this process”.
Prior to jury selection, Wall told would-be jurors, “I’m sure the defendant will be pleased to know that many of you know his name or have seen his films.”
EARLIER: In the last few minutes, Kevin Spacey has arrived at Britain’s Crown Court, where he faces a month-long trial after being accused of sexual offenses against four men.
Kevin Spacey in court. Image: Elizabeth Cook/PA Wire
In a trial that will decide whether the Oscar-winning American beauty star still has a future in the film and television world, Spacey is denying 12 charges including sexual assault and indecent assault.
He arrived in a taxi this morning wearing a pink tie and navy suit and took a moment to smile, wave and say “good morning” to the people who had gathered outside the courtroom before he entered the building.
The trial at Southwark Crown Court will last four weeks and it is not yet known if Spacey will comment in his own defence. After being charged earlier in the year, he appeared briefly via video link in April to confirm his name. However, he is expected to be in Southwark for the duration of his trial. He is on unconditional bail.
In a first hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in June, Spacey’s lawyer Patrick Gibbs QC said his client “strongly denies any criminality in this case”. Speaking to ZEITmagazin earlier this month, Spacey said: “There are currently people willing to hire me as soon as I am acquitted of these charges in London.”
Image: Aaron Chown/PA Wire
Spacey in January pleaded not guilty to three counts of indecent assault, three counts of sexual assault and one count of inducing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent. The two-time Oscar winner also previously denied four other charges of sexual assault and one count of inducing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.
The 63-year-old, whose real name is Kevin Spacey Fowler and has also starred in “House of Cards”, “The Usual Suspects” and “Se7en”, will learn of the allegations from the period between 2001 and 2013. He was also artistic director at The Old Vic theater in London between 2004 and 2015. The Old Vic investigated after receiving 20 allegations of inappropriate behavior against the star and a subsequent report said it had a “cult of personality”. given him.
Spacey is getting used to being faced with high-profile lawsuits that draw a lot of media attention. Last year, he won a $40 million civil suit in New York after a high-profile sexual misconduct lawsuit brought by Star Trek: Discovery star Anthony Rapp. Rapp had accused Spacey of sexually abusing him at a party when he was 14 and Spacey was 26, but a jury deliberated for just over an hour before deciding Rapp had failed to prove his allegations .
Spacey has an address in Waterloo, south London, but also lives in the US where he has family and a dog. His lawyer, Gibbs, said he returned to the UK “to prove his innocence” and “to get on with his life”.
The trial is expected to end at the end of next month.