A Manhattan federal jury found Kevin Spacey not liable in the Anthony Rapp lawsuit on October 20, 2022, rejecting Rapp’s $40 million battery claim after deliberating a little over an hour. Jurors concluded that Rapp’s lawyers had not proven Spacey “touched a sexual or intimate part” of him during the 1986 encounter Rapp described.1Variety. Kevin Spacey: Anthony Rapp Loses $40 Million Sexual Battery Lawsuit
What Rapp Accused Spacey Of
Rapp said the incident happened in 1986, when both actors were working on Broadway. Rapp was 14 and appearing in Precious Sons. Spacey was 26 and performing in a revival of Long Day’s Journey Into Night. According to Rapp, Spacey invited him to a party at his Manhattan apartment. When Rapp was the last guest remaining, he went into a bedroom to watch television. Spacey, who appeared drunk, entered the room, picked Rapp up “like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold,” placed him on a bed, and climbed on top of him, pressing his body against the teenager. Rapp said he squirmed away, went to the bathroom, and left. As he departed, Spacey allegedly asked, “Are you sure you wanna go?”2BuzzFeed News. Anthony Rapp: Kevin Spacey Made a Sexual Advance Toward Me When I Was 14
Rapp had first shared the story publicly, without naming Spacey, in a 2001 interview with The Advocate. He identified Spacey by name for the first time in a BuzzFeed News article published on October 30, 2017, one of the earliest high-profile allegations of the #MeToo era in Hollywood.2BuzzFeed News. Anthony Rapp: Kevin Spacey Made a Sexual Advance Toward Me When I Was 14
Within hours of the story appearing, Spacey posted a statement on Twitter saying he was “beyond horrified” but did not recall the encounter, adding that if he had behaved as Rapp described, “I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.” In the same statement he came out as gay. The pairing drew immediate criticism, and the statement itself later became a focus of the trial.3NPR. Kevin Spacey Apologizes to Anthony Rapp Over Alleged Sexual Misconduct
How a 1986 Claim Ended Up in Court in 2020
Rapp filed his lawsuit on September 9, 2020, initially in New York state court. It was removed to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, docketed as 20-cv-9586, and assigned to Judge Lewis Kaplan.4SDNY Blog. Order Denying Anonymity, Rapp v. Spacey The suit alleged battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress and sought $40 million in damages.5The Guardian. Kevin Spacey Trial: New York Sexual Abuse Accusations
The claim was only viable because of New York’s Child Victims Act, which in 2019 opened a temporary lookback window allowing people sexually abused as minors to bring civil claims after the ordinary statute of limitations had expired.6Rolling Stone. Kevin Spacey, Anthony Rapp Lawsuit and the Child Victims Act
Two of Rapp’s claims fell away before the jury heard anything. A separate sexual assault claim was dismissed in June 2022 as filed too late. Judge Kaplan also dropped the intentional infliction of emotional distress claim as redundant. That left battery as the sole issue for trial.1Variety. Kevin Spacey: Anthony Rapp Loses $40 Million Sexual Battery Lawsuit
Rapp on the Stand
The trial began in early October 2022 in federal court in Manhattan and ran about three weeks. Rapp described the 1986 encounter in detail, telling jurors that Spacey picked him up, placed him on a bed, and pressed his pelvis against Rapp’s hip before Rapp escaped.7The New York Times. Kevin Spacey, Anthony Rapp Testimony He testified about the emotional aftermath, saying that every time he saw Spacey onscreen in films like American Beauty or Working Girl, “it was as if someone poked me with a cattle prod,” and that as Spacey’s fame grew, “it was harder and harder to escape.”8Rolling Stone. Kevin Spacey, Anthony Rapp Trial: Day Two Testimony
On cross-examination, Spacey’s attorney Jennifer Keller pressed Rapp on discrepancies between his trial testimony and earlier versions of the story, questioning whether he was being “deliberately vague” about certain details.7The New York Times. Kevin Spacey, Anthony Rapp Testimony The defense also introduced a text message showing Rapp had contacted a BuzzFeed News reporter eight days before hearing Lupita Nyong’o discuss Harvey Weinstein. That timing undercut the argument by Rapp’s lawyers that Nyong’o’s account had prompted him to come forward, and Rapp conceded on the stand that one of his stated motivations was untrue.8Rolling Stone. Kevin Spacey, Anthony Rapp Trial: Day Two Testimony
Spacey’s Denial and the Apartment Defense
Spacey also testified. He denied the encounter outright, saying it “never happened” and that he had no sexual interest in Rapp or any child. He pointed to a factual problem in Rapp’s account: he had lived in a studio apartment at the time, not the one-bedroom apartment Rapp described. He also expressed regret for his 2017 Twitter statement, telling jurors that publicists and lawyers had pressured him to issue it at the height of the #MeToo movement. “I’ve learned a lesson, which is never apologize for something you didn’t do,” he said.9NPR. Kevin Spacey Anthony Rapp Verdict
The defense built its case around the apartment’s floor plan. Keller called the layout “the star witness,” arguing that without a separate bedroom, the scenario Rapp described could not have happened.10Deadline. Kevin Spacey Trial: Anthony Rapp Closing Arguments In closing, Keller accused Rapp of maintaining a “35-year crusade” based on a fabrication and suggested Rapp might have confused the encounter with a scene from Precious Sons, in which Ed Harris’s character picks up and lies on top of Rapp’s character. She also floated professional jealousy as a motive, telling jurors, “Mr. Rapp is getting more attention from this trial than he has in his entire acting life.”9NPR. Kevin Spacey Anthony Rapp Verdict
The Verdict and the Reactions
The jury deliberated a little more than an hour before returning a unanimous verdict for Spacey on October 20, 2022. The specific finding: Rapp’s lawyers had not proven that Spacey “touched a sexual or intimate part” of him, the element required for battery under the theory of the case.1Variety. Kevin Spacey: Anthony Rapp Loses $40 Million Sexual Battery Lawsuit
Spacey left the courthouse without speaking to reporters. Keller told the press the defense was “deeply grateful for the jury system and this jury in particular,” calling the jurors “very bright people” who “could see right through this.”11Courthouse News. Kevin Spacey Not Liable in $40M Sexual Battery Case Rapp’s lawyers declined to comment at the courthouse. Rapp posted a statement on social media later that day: “Bringing this lawsuit was always about shining a light, as part of the larger movement to stand up against all forms of sexual violence. I pledge to keep on advocating for efforts to ensure that we can live and work in a world that is free from sexual violence of any kind.”1Variety. Kevin Spacey: Anthony Rapp Loses $40 Million Sexual Battery Lawsuit
How This Case Differs From the Other Spacey Proceedings
The Rapp verdict is often confused with other legal matters involving Spacey; it does not resolve or relate to them. A Massachusetts criminal case brought by a different accuser was dropped in 2019 after evidence problems, including a lost phone and deleted data.12Today. Kevin Spacey Controversies A UK criminal trial at Southwark Crown Court in July 2023, covering nine charges involving four men from 2001 to 2013, ended with Spacey acquitted on all counts.13NPR. Kevin Spacey Sexual Assault Trial Verdict London In March 2026, Spacey and three UK civil accusers reached a confidential settlement that stayed further proceedings and canceled a trial that had been set for October 2026; Spacey continues to deny the allegations.14NBC News. Kevin Spacey Settles UK Civil Lawsuits Over Alleged Sexual Assault Each of those matters involved different accusers, different jurisdictions, and different alleged conduct from what Rapp brought before the New York jury.