Former Netflix star Kevin Spacey has been ordered to pay a whopping $31 million to the studio of the former drama “House Of Cards” for violating their contractual agreement with his unprofessional behavior on set. In each of the five seasons he had filmed for the show, Spacey is alleged to have engaged in “certain conduct in connection with several crew members,” which then followed by allegations of sexual assault from another man while the actor was filming season six.
Producers of the company MRC had to rewrite the script after firing Kevin during the production of the sixth series in 2017 due to multiple sexual misconduct claims. And upon finding out he was also alleged to have sexually harassed crew members at the Netflix show, it was inevitable that “House Of Cards” would come to an end, given that its lead star was embroiled in a heap of accusations that the studio could not overlook.
Variety: A judge has ordered Kevin Spacey to pay “House of Cards” production company MRC nearly $31 million for alleged sexual misconduct behind the scenes of the Netflix White House drama.
— The Bias (@thebias_news) August 5, 2022
On Thursday, Los Angeles County Judge Mel Red Recana made the ruling, via Rolling Stone, saying, “Netflix’s action was caused by the conduct of the respondent, and because of the conduct, which was a breach of the contract, (MRC) incurred expenses and costs. So it’s got to be rationally based,”
Producers reportedly had to cut down the season to just eight episodes seeing that the screenplay had to be revised in a hectic manner to meet its deadline with Netflix, who had already confirmed a release date for the final series, which was initially expected to run longer than it did.
“Respondents fail to demonstrate that this is even a close case. Respondents do not demonstrate that the damages award was so utterly irrational that it amounts to an arbitrary remaking of the parties’ contracts,” the judge continued. “Respondents do not show that the arbitrator acted beyond his authority under the scope of the parties’ arbitration agreements.”
By the time they’re done with Kevin Spacey, he won’t have a penny left. This is how you absolutely and utterly cancel someone. Now it’s time for the American justice system to do the same to the Steve Bannons and Alex Joneses. #USPolitics #KevinSpacey https://t.co/VCmZKR6ZQi
— Matt Hopkins (@RealMattHopkins) August 5, 2022
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The total amount which Spacey is expected to pay includes $29.5 million in compensatory damages and $1.2 million in attorney fees, while the remaining $235,707 will go to MRC. The “American Beauty” actor had initially filed a counter-claim against the firm, insisting that he was wrongfully terminated from his contract and supposedly breached their obligations to “pay or play” under the terms mentioned in the agreement.
Furthermore, Spacey contended that the allegations made against him would not have been a huge factor in the studio’s losses, even though the script had to be revised, which MRC said had cost them a fortune given the limited time they had to finish the series before its proposed release date.