After Star Trek: Discovery actor Anthony Rapp bravely came forward to accuse Kevin Spacey of trying to seduce him when he was only 14, the House of Cards star shifted the discussion. He apologized for what might have happened, and then changed the narrative to his own coming out. “I have loved and had romantic encounters with men throughout my life,†Spacey wrote in a statement, “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.†But for many, the action rang as hollow as Harvey Weinstein suggesting he’d take on the NRA or James Toback denying the sexual-harassment allegations against him by suggesting that favoritism is what’s really beneath his high artistic standards. Many celebrities saw Spacey’s statement as irresponsibly linking pedophilia and gay identity, while another (Inhumans’s Anson Mount) suggested these allegations have been a long time coming:
Update: GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis has also expressed her disappointment with Spacey’s statement, and his decision to come out in the midst of a sexual-assault allegation. “This isn’t a coming out story about Spacey, but a story of survivorship by Anthony Rapp and those who speak out about unwanted sexual advances,†Ellis tweeted.
George Takei has issued a statement via The Hollywood Reporter.
“When power is used in a non-consensual situation, it is a wrong. For Anthony Rapp, he has had to live with the memory of this experience of decades ago. For Kevin Spacey, who claims not to remember the incident, he was the older, dominant one who had his way. Men who improperly harass or assault do not do so because they are gay or straight — that is a deflection. They do so because they have the power, and they chose to abuse it.â€