Media Rights Capital, the production company behind House of Cards, has lost a trial over a nine-figure insurance payout in connection with the sixth season of the show.
A Los Angeles jury found on Tuesday that MRC’s losses weren’t a result of a condition by Kevin Spacey that prevented him from filming, according to a court filing.
MRC sought upwards of $100 million from its insurer, Fireman’s Fund. The question at the center of the trial: What actually killed Spacey’s appearance from the final season? MRC argued it was because of the actor’s sex addiction, which it maintained is a sickness that led to his unavailability. Fireman’s Fund said it was actually because of media fallout in response to allegations of sexual assault. A win for MRC would’ve had major implications for production insurance coverage moving forward.
The allegations against Spacey surfaced a 2017 BuzzFeed report detailing sexual abuse and assault by the actor across several decades. It was followed by a CNN story accusing him of sexually assaulting crew members. Around that time, the actor checked himself into The Meadows, a $28,000-a-month rehab facility. MRC operated under the belief that Spacey would be incapable of appearing for the sixth season of the show and announced his suspension.
Evidence in the trial included representations from Spacey’s legal team that the actor was “available, willing and able to provide all of the services” required under his contract.
Under the policy, MRC was covered for losses in connection with a “sickness,” which was a major focus of the trial. When Spacey took the stand earlier this month, he contested assertions that he was incapable of working. He said he was ready and willing to film the sixth season of House of Cards but that he was unfairly ousted on false grounds so the show’s producers could submit a massive insurance claim.
At one point in his testimony, Spacey disputed findings in his medical records from his time at the rehab facility showing that he had a condition requiring treatment. “Throughout the medical records, there are comments attributed to me that I never said,” he said. “They’re under the impression I have a British accent and have a wife.”
The actor’s posture on his condition was contested by Michael Genovese, a psychiatrist and expert witness for MRC who said that Spacey contemplated suicide. “One [idea] was to hang himself the night before he went into The Meadows,” Genovese recounted. Another was to step in front of a vehicle during his stay at the rehab facility, he added.
Evidence featuring Spacey’s medical records, which showed he suffered from sex addiction, was a result of a settlement between MRC and the actor, who was on the hook for over $31 million for breaching his contract by violating anti-harassment policies. In exchange for reducing the arbitration award to $1 million, Spacey agreed to turn over his medical records and provide a court declaration that he may have killed himself if he had to return for the final season of the show. His cooperation was crucial in getting the case before a jury. Before that, the court indicated that it’d likely dismiss the lawsuit.
Lawyers for MRC and Fireman’s Fund didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
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