Twenty years ago, Kevin Spacey was a Hollywood Staple. He had come off “The Usual Suspects,” “L.A Confidential,” “Seven” and “American Beauty,” winning an Oscar for his performances in both “American Beauty” and “The Usual Suspects.” More recently he’s been known, or was known, for his role in the Netflix political drama, “House of Cards.” While the show may be entertaining to watch on-screen, it’s been the opposite watching it play out in real life. 

“In an interview with Buzzfeed News, actor Anthony Rapp claims Spacey made a sexual advance towards him when Rapp was 14,” BBC News stated. “Rapp, now 46, claims Spacey laid on top of him at a party at the actor’s apartment in 1986 and alleges the star ‘was trying to seduce’ him.” 

After that, everything snowballed.

Spacey tried to say he was drunk, and even came out as gay in an effort to gain sympathy. In the following months, there would be several verifiable allegations that came out against Spacey from young Hollywood hopefuls who were taken advantage of by a predatory veteran. In fact, at a bar in Massachusetts in 2016, a young man reported – in 2018 – that he was being harassed by Spacey. Spacey defended himself by claiming that he was in character as his “House of Cards” character, Frank Underwood. 

Hollywood and unions surrounding it cut all ties with the actor, and he was kicked off “House of Cards” and replaced in films. Spacey continued to deny the piling charges and allegations despite obvious evidence, much like his character in “House of Cards.”

Then, in 2019, where Spacey has had to show his face in court, charges have mysteriously been dropping one by one. 

“The alleged victim’s lawyer says his client filed papers on 3 July to dismiss the suit voluntarily,” BBC reported about a case involving Spacey’s behavior in 2016. “The case is dismissed with prejudice, meaning Spacey’s accuser cannot refile the case later.”

Then, in July of 2019, Prosecutors in Massachusetts dropped a criminal case relating to charges of indecent assault and battery, which stemmed from the accusation that Spacey groped an 18-year-old man at a bar in 2016. The charges were dropped after the accuser refused to testify about a missing phone. The actor’s lawyers accuse the man of deleting crucial text messages and say the phone could be used to prove their client’s innocence.

Most recently, one of Spacey’s remaining accusers died in a car accident, therefore dropping the case against him. 

The Spacey case is absolutely bizarre. It’s an example of this new culture we as a society have created. We thrive off of entertainment, and that’s what everything is all about. Everything is more immersive than ever before, and content creators do whatever they can to make audiences feel connected to things. Whether people like it or not, it works. Kevin Spacey is a terrible human, and an absolute psychopath, but he is the result of the hungry consumer and society’s emphasis on entertainment. 

This is proven by Spacey’s video that he posted to his personal youtube account titled, “Let me Be Frank.” The title is a pun of course, but it’s also literal. 

“The video is as double-toned as it is clunkily titled,” The Daily Beast summarized. “You can take the character talking to you to be a mash-up of fiction and reality, Underwood and Spacey – although only a really good shrink or prosecution lawyer could ultimately determine which is which.”

“You want me back,” Underwood/Spacey says, direct to the camera, oddly sexual and suggestive, and oddly demanding and imposing.”

Spacey’s ego is clearly inflated and this is exemplary of many of the men incarcerated as a result of the now more established MeToo movement. The lack of responsibility, accountability and respect exhibited by Hollywood heroes have set the precedent going forward. 

Kevin Spacey is a popular guy, someone who we would not have expected to hear these things about, yet it happened anyway. Who else do we not know about? Will we ever know the truth about Spacey’s actions? And will actors justify their actions by playing their most famous roles? We’ll never know, but at least we won’t have anyone as crazy as Spacey.