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Teary Kevin Spacey Testifies of Abuse Claims: ‘Not True’

Kevin Spacey sits near Anthony Rapp as he listens as John Barrowman testifies via video during Rapp's civil sex abuse case against Spacey in this courtroom sketch from the trial in New York, US, October 17, 2022. (Reuters)
Kevin Spacey sits near Anthony Rapp as he listens as John Barrowman testifies via video during Rapp's civil sex abuse case against Spacey in this courtroom sketch from the trial in New York, US, October 17, 2022. (Reuters)
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Teary Kevin Spacey Testifies of Abuse Claims: ‘Not True’

Kevin Spacey sits near Anthony Rapp as he listens as John Barrowman testifies via video during Rapp's civil sex abuse case against Spacey in this courtroom sketch from the trial in New York, US, October 17, 2022. (Reuters)
Kevin Spacey sits near Anthony Rapp as he listens as John Barrowman testifies via video during Rapp's civil sex abuse case against Spacey in this courtroom sketch from the trial in New York, US, October 17, 2022. (Reuters)

An emotional Kevin Spacey testified in a New York courtroom Monday that he never made a sexual pass at the actor Anthony Rapp, who has sued for millions of dollars in damages, claiming the Academy Award-winning actor tried to take him to bed when he was 14.

Repeatedly, Spacey denied Rapp's claims that a then-26-year-old Spacey picked him up like a groom does a bride after a 1986 party at his Manhattan apartment and put him on his bed before lying on top of him.

Rapp testified earlier in a civil trial in which he accuses Spacey of assault and battery in the fully clothed encounter before fleeing, only to have Spacey follow him to the door and ask if he was sure he wanted to leave.

“They are not true,” Spacey said of the allegations, first made in 2017 in an interview with Buzzfeed. The accusations, along with more made by others, brought to an end Spacey's popular role on the Netflix series “House of Cards” and abruptly derailed his career.

Spacey, 63, dabbed tears from his eyes with a tissue and sniffled as he described immediate intense pressure from publicists and lawyers to respond with compassion and empathy and an apology to Rapp's claims.

“They told me I couldn't push back on the story,” Spacey recalled. “I knew I wouldn't have any sexual interest in Anthony Rapp or any child. That I knew."

At the time, with the #MeToo movement gaining momentum, “The industry was very nervous. There was a lot of fear in the air about who was going to be next,” he said.

He added: “I was shocked. I was frightened and I was confused. ... I knew I had never been alone with Anthony Rapp.”

After the article, the two-time Oscar winner said on Twitter that he didn't recall the encounter with Rapp, adding: “But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years.”

His managers said “it was the best way to contain a crisis that was going to get worse” and to avoid being accused of “being a victim shamer,” he said.

Spacey told jurors he now regrets “my entire statement.”

“I've learned a lesson, which is never apologize for something you didn't do,” he said.

Spacey, testifying on a day when Judge Lewis A. Kaplan tossed out Rapp's claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress on the grounds that it duplicated aspects of the assault and battery allegation, also was asked if he has been private about his personal life over his career.

“I grew up in a very complicated family dynamic,” he said, explaining that rants by his father when he was a youngster led him to hate bigotry and intolerance.

“My father was a white supremacist and neo-Nazi,” Spacey said. “It meant that my siblings and I were forced to listen to hours and hours of my father lecturing us about his beliefs.”

Prior to Monday's testimony, Spacey said he had "never talked about these things publicly, ever.”

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Entertainment

Glitzy Oscar Nominees Luncheon Back One Year After LA Fires 

Brazilian actor Wagner Moura arrives to The Hollywood Reporter's Nominees Night held at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2026. (AFP)
Brazilian actor Wagner Moura arrives to The Hollywood Reporter's Nominees Night held at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2026. (AFP)
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Glitzy Oscar Nominees Luncheon Back One Year After LA Fires 

Brazilian actor Wagner Moura arrives to The Hollywood Reporter's Nominees Night held at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2026. (AFP)
Brazilian actor Wagner Moura arrives to The Hollywood Reporter's Nominees Night held at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2026. (AFP)

Hollywood stars embraced at this year's Oscars nominee lunch, the glamorous pre-show gathering that was canceled amid last year's devastating Los Angeles wildfires.

Timothee Chalamet, nominated for best actor in "Marty Supreme," flashed a smile while fellow Best Actor contenders Micahel B. Jordan and Ethan Hawke also flitted around the annual luncheon in Beverly Hills.

Mexican director Guillermo del Toro chatted with his tablemates as Wagner Moura, the Brazilian star of "The Secret Agent," enthusiastically embraced Stellan Skarsgard and Oliver Laxe -- the latter of whom has his film "Sirat" up for best international feature film.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Lynette Howell Taylor praised the diversity of this year's nominees.

"Ballots were cast from 88 countries and regions," the British producer said, adding that "the mission of the Academy is to amplify your art, movies and your voices."

The more than 200 nominees enjoyed a buzzy afternoon, all the more energetic after last year's lunch was canceled as huge fires razed whole communities around Los Angeles. That year the lunch was replaced with a smaller dinner at the Academy's museum.

"This is a recognition of Brazilian cinema, and of the cinema of our region," Moura told AFP.

Nearby, "The Secret Agent" director Kleber Mendonca Filho joked he was feeling animated -- "like a generator."

Skarsgard said that the impact of international films is growing, as evidenced by his historic nomination for Best Supporting Actor for Norwegian film "Sentimental Value."

Foreign films and their stars typically notch nominations in the international categories, but Skarsgard is competing against nominees from US blockbusters, including Benicio del Toro in "One Battle After Another" and Delroy Lindo in "Sinners."

Benicio del Toro meanwhile told AFP he was doubly thrilled after watching fellow Puerto Rican Bad Bunny perform at the Super Bowl halftime show over the weekend.

"I got goosebumps," he told AFP, adding: "It was beautiful."

The luncheon's other legendary del Toro, the director Guillermo, meanwhile said he was "calm."

While his "Frankenstein" is nominated for Best Picture, del Toro himself is off the hook for Best Director, which he said took the pressure off him and meant he could focus on promoting his team.

"I'm happy because nine nominations don't happen every day," he said.

Lanky heartthrob Jacob Elordi, up for best supporting actor, offered a similarly toned down vibe at an impromptu photo shoot.

"I'm chilling," he said. "It's all good."

Entertainment

‘Family Under Pressure’ at Berlin Film Festival

Of more than 200 films shown during the Berlin Film Festival, 22 will compete for the coveted Golden Bear. (AFP)
Of more than 200 films shown during the Berlin Film Festival, 22 will compete for the coveted Golden Bear. (AFP)
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‘Family Under Pressure’ at Berlin Film Festival

Of more than 200 films shown during the Berlin Film Festival, 22 will compete for the coveted Golden Bear. (AFP)
Of more than 200 films shown during the Berlin Film Festival, 22 will compete for the coveted Golden Bear. (AFP)

The 76th edition of the Berlin Film Festival opens on Thursday, featuring productions from over 80 countries and with German film legend Wim Wenders presiding over this year's jury.

AFP sat down with festival director Tricia Tuttle, who is in her second year at the helm, for a look-ahead at Europe's first big cinema festival of the year.

Here are five things to expect from this year's festival, which runs until February 22.

- 'Reflecting international cinema' -

Of more than 200 films shown during the10-day festival, 22 will compete for the coveted Golden Bear, which was won last year by the drama "Dreams" from Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud.

In assembling this year's diverse program, Tuttle said that "the guiding principle was to reflect where international cinema is right now".

She said that she had noticed "family and intimacy under pressure, questions of care, power, belonging, and the experience of living between worlds" as themes running through this year's selection.

"Many of the films look at how private lives are shaped by larger political and social forces."

The festival will also honor Malaysian actor Michelle Yeoh -- who won the best actress Oscar in 2023 for "Everything Everywhere All at Once" -- with a lifetime achievement award.

- Spotlight on women directors -

As in 2025, women directed most of the films being screened at the festival.

Among those in the official competition, nine out of 22 were directed by women, a higher proportion than at the Cannes or Venice festivals.

"One thing that is encouraging for me is the number of second and third time female film-makers who have made strong work," Tuttle said.

The opening film, "No Good Men", is itself the third feature-length film from Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat.

"It's about Afghan women's experience, which you wouldn't see if it wasn't for Shahrbanoo's work," Tuttle said.

Sadat fled her home country following the Taliban takeover in 2021 and now lives in Hamburg.

- American films remain elusive -

In contrast to Cannes or Venice, which regularly attract Oscar contenders, Berlin does not feature as many large-scale US productions and the sprinkle of stardust that often accompanies them.

"Some of the biggest authored films of the year, those sort of commercial-arthouse crossover films, haven't launched out of festivals this year," Tuttle noted, perhaps in a nod to titles such as "One Battle After Another", "Sinners" and "Marty Supreme".

For such films, which can easily cost more than $100 million to make, producers and distributors are increasingly keen on controlling all aspects of a film's release.

"Festivals can be busy, noisy places where you might not get the cut-through that you want," according to Tuttle -- not to mention running the risk of negative reviews from critics.

- The era of co-productions -

This year's festival will notably feature European co-productions with financing from several countries.

According to Tuttle, "there's an opportunity right now for Europe, for European producers to work together" as the industry more broadly continues to fracture.

She cites the example of Joachim Trier's "Sentimental Value", nominated for nine Oscars, which is a co-production between Norway, Denmark, France and Germany.

"Sentimental Value is a film that is made by many countries in terms of investment, but it's very much the work of an author and a really important filmmaker," said Tuttle.

- Streaming platforms almost absent -

Unlike in Venice, where three Netflix-produced films entered the official competition, the giants of the streaming world are relatively marginal in Berlin.

"There's real value to be had in theatrical exhibition, not just because there's money to be made there ... but also, for us as movie fans, it's the best way to see a film," said Tuttle.

The only Netflix film at this year's Berlinale will feature in the "Special Presentation" section -- outside of the official competition.

"Un hijo proprio" ("A Child of My Own") is a documentary-length feature telling the story of a Mexican woman who invents a pregnancy in an attempt to escape pressure from her family to have a child.

Entertainment

Movie Review: Stephen Curry's Animated Basketball Movie 'GOAT' Is a Disappointing Air Ball

Stephen Curry attends a premiere for the film "GOAT", in Los Angeles, California, US, February 6, 2026. (Reuters)
Stephen Curry attends a premiere for the film "GOAT", in Los Angeles, California, US, February 6, 2026. (Reuters)
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Movie Review: Stephen Curry's Animated Basketball Movie 'GOAT' Is a Disappointing Air Ball

Stephen Curry attends a premiere for the film "GOAT", in Los Angeles, California, US, February 6, 2026. (Reuters)
Stephen Curry attends a premiere for the film "GOAT", in Los Angeles, California, US, February 6, 2026. (Reuters)

You'd expect an animated basketball movie with four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry in the producer's chair to be an easy lay-up. So why is “GOAT” such a brick?

Despite a wondrously textured, kinetic world and some interesting oddball characters, the movie is undone by a predictable, saccharine script. It’s as easy to see the steps coming as a Curry three-pointer arching into the net.

The movie has the kind of lazy, thin writing that feels like it all could have derived from a Hollywood happy hour gettogether: “Bro, bro. Wait. What if the GOAT was an actual goat?”

It centers on Will Harris, a goat with dreams of becoming a great baller, voiced by “Stranger Things” star Caleb McLaughlin. Undersized and an orphan — again with the orphans, guys? — Will is a delivery driver for a diner and late on his rent. He's a great outside shooter but a liability in the paint, unless he learns, that is.

He lives in Vineland — a hectic urban landscape with graffiti and living vines that choke the playgrounds — and is a rabid supporter of the local franchise, the Thorns. His idol is veteran Jett Fillmore, a leopard who's the league's all-time leading scorer, nicely voiced by Gabrielle Union. The Thorns are a bit of a mess, despite Jett's brilliance.

The game here is called roarball, a high-intensity, co-ed, multi-animal, full-contact sport derived from basketball with a hollow ball that has small holes. It's a “Mad Max” sport — ultraviolent, unofficiated and the dangers lurk not just from the beefy opponents but from the arena itself. The championship award is called the Claw.

The best part of the movie may be the environments for the other arenas — lava in one, a swamp with stalagmites and stalactites in another, plus an ice-bound one and another with desert sandstorms and rocks. Homefield advantage is a big thing in this league.

There seem to be only two kinds of points scored here — blazing windmills, cutting tomahawks and spectacular alley-oop dunks or slow-mo threes from so far downtown they might as well be in a different zip code. No mid-range jumpers, bro.

This universe is divided into “bigs” and “smalls” — rhinos, bears and giraffes on one side, gerbils and capybara on the other — and Will is deemed a small. “Smalls can’t ball,” he is told, condescendingly.

But Will — thanks to a viral video — improbably gets signed to the Thorns by the team's owner (a cynical warthog voiced wonderfully by Jenifer Lewis). It's seen as a shameless publicity stunt that no one wants, especially Jett, who needs a winning season after being taunted by “All stats, no Claw.”

Now, predictably, in Aaron Buchsbaum and Teddy Riley script, comes the bulk of the movie, giving a steady “The Karate Kid” or “Air Bud” vibe as it charts Will's steady rise to honored teammate and franchise future, despite Jett insisting she's not ready to go: “I’m the GOAT. I’m not passing the torch.”

The lessons are good — the importance of teamwork and believing in yourself — but the testosterone-fueled violence on the courts is WWE extreme. There are unnecessary plugs for Mercedes and Under Armor, and hollow slogans like “Dream big” and “Roots run deep.”

Some of the most interesting characters end up on the Thorns, a fragile, somewhat broken team that includes a rhino (voiced by David Harbour), a delicate ostrich (Nicola Coughlan), a gonzo Komodo dragon (Nick Kroll) and a desultory giraffe (Curry).

The Komodo dragon, named Modo, is the best of the bunch, an insane, unpredictable creature full of electricity. “If Modo was any more of a snack, he’d eat himself,” he declares. Could he get his own movie?

Directed by “Bob’s Burgers” veteran Tyree Dillihay and Adam Rosette, “GOAT” is targeted to Gen Alpha, leveraging cellphone screens and online likes, virality and diss tracks. It's not as funny as it thinks it is and tiresome in its overly familiar redemption arc.

Another potential basketball GOAT — Michael Jordan — gave us a clunker of a live-action- animated basketball movie in “Space Jam” exactly 30 years ago and “GOAT,” while not as bad as that mess, is an air ball none the same.