Kevin Spacey Must Pay $31M for Breaching ‘House of Cards’ Deal
An arbitrator rules that the actor's pattern of sexual harassment caused damage to MRC and flouted contractual obligations.
Kevin Spacey
Getty ImagesAfter a two-year legal battle behind closed doors, an arbitrator has ruled that Kevin Spacey must pay House of Cards producer MRC nearly $31 million for sexual misconduct behind the scenes of the political series. On Monday, MRC filed papers in Los Angeles Superior Court seeking to confirm the arbitration award.
Spacey, who played Frank Underwood on House of Cards, was cut from the influential Netflix series following explosive allegations of sexually preying on young men. The accusations, which included groping of a production assistant, caused MRC to conduct an investigation and ultimately terminate his acting and producing contracts. The dispute then went to JAMS, where both sides pursued claims against one another.
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According to the latest filing, in an Oct. 19 decision the arbitrator concluded that Spacey repeatedly breached contractual obligations to provide services “in a professional manner��� and “consistent with [MRC’s] reasonable directions, practices and policies,” including anti-harassment policies.
The JAMS arbitrator also pointed to how MRC had suffered from Spacey’s conduct, including having to halt the sixth season of House of Cards, rewrite the season and shorten it from 13 to eight episodes to meet a delivery deadline. Spacey claimed to still be entitled to money under his “pay or play” deal and argued that it was the decision by MRC and Netflix to cut him loose and not his conduct in early seasons outside the statute of limitations that had caused financial losses, but those contentions didn’t find favor in arbitration.
The oscar winner, whose career has been in free fall since he was accused of multiple instances of sexual assault, unsuccessfully attempted to appeal the award to a panel of three additional arbitrators, continues the filing.
“The safety of our employees, sets and work environments is of paramount importance to MRC and why we set out to push for accountability,” said MRC in a statement following the filing.
“MRC stood its ground, pursued this case doggedly, and obtained the right result in the end,” said Kinsella Weitzman partner Michael Kump.
(MRC is a co-owner of The Hollywood Reporter through a joint venture with Penske Media titled PMRC.)