Social Media Responds to Kevin Spacey Coming out Amid Sexual Harassment Allegations

Kevin Spacey came out as gay in a statement on social media Sunday, but many people are criticizing the actor for his ill-timed confession.

The House of Cards star shared the news as part of a public apology to actor Anthony Rapp, who alleges that Spacey climbed on top of him at a Manhattan party while “trying to seduce” him when Rapp was only 14 years old. Spacey, now 58, would have been 26 at the time.

Spacey claimed he did not remember the incident, but he issued “the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate behavior,” he responded on Twitter Sunday night.

In the second paragraph of his public statement, Spacey revealed that he has had relationships with both men and women throughout the years and “I choose now to live as a gay man,” he wrote.

But rather than incite feelings of praise and acceptance, the actor’s statement was met with confusion and anger for its inappropriate delivery.

Spacey’s shifting narrative:

When Spacey tweeted his statement in response to Rapp’s claims, he was met with messages of criticism, rather than support.

Rapp’s allegations against Spacey were published in an interview with Buzzfeed Sunday. The actor says Spacey invited him to his Manhattan apartment for a party in 1986, and after a while, Rapp said he and Spacey were alone.

“My memory was that I thought, Oh, everybody’s gone. Well, yeah, I should probably go home,” Rapp said.

He alleges that Spacey picked him up “like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold. But I don’t, like, squirm away initially, because I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ And then he lays down on top of me,” Rapp continued.

“He was trying to seduce me,” the actor said.

Spacey responded with a two-paragraph message to Rapp. First, he apologized for any inappropriate choices he may have made that night, more than 30 years ago.

“I have a lot of respect and admiration for Anthony Rapp as an actor. I’m beyond horrified to hear his story,” Spacey wrote. “I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave 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.”

“This story has encouraged me to address other things about my life,” the House of Cards actor said. “I know that there are stories out there about me and that some have been fueled by the fact that I have been so protective of my privacy.”

“As those closest to me know, in my life, I have had relationships with both men and women,” he continued. “I have loved and had romantic relationships with men throughout my life, 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.”

Gay community’s reaction:

Rapp said he never approached Spacey about the incident, but he eventually talked to a lawyer who encouraged him not to pursue legal action.

“The older I get, and the more I know, I feel very fortunate that something worse didn’t happen,” Rapp said. “And at the same time, the older I get, the more I can’t believe it. I could never imagine anyone else I know would do something like that to a 14-year-old boy.”

Many criticized Spacey’s coming out story as a way to deflect from the allegations he faces, while others condemned him for harming the gay community’s progress in recent decades.

Harvey Weinstein comparisons:

Rapp said the recent allegations against Hollywood heavyweight Harvey Weinstein encouraged him to come forward with his own story of sexual misconduct, even more than 30 years later.

“Part of what allowed the Harvey situation to occur was that there was this witting and unwitting conspiracy of silence,” he said. “The only way these things can continue is if there’s no attention being paid to it, if it’s getting forgotten.”

Rose McGowan, one of Weinstein’s main accusers, tweeted a message to Spacey after his response to Rapp’s allegations.

Rapp’s shared experiences follows a series of allegations against different men in the political or entertainment spotlight, which the internet will not soon forget.

Rapp’s response:

After Spacey issued a response, Rapp took to Twitter to share his brief thoughts with fans. 

While he chose not to comment on Spacey’s immediate response and subsequent coming out story, he did acknowledge the “many courageous women and men” who have recently come forward by sharing their own experiences of sexual harassment and abuse in Hollywood.

Photo credit: Getty / CBS Photo Archive / Contributor