Following Sunday night’s Kevin Spacey bombshell, Netflix decided to indefinitely suspend production on their hit series “House of Cards”, which was currently filming its sixth season.
Netflix and the show’s producer, Media Rights Capital (MCR), issued a statement to ET Canada: “MRC and Netflix have decided to suspend production on ‘House of Cards’ season six until further notice, to give us time to review the current situation and to address any concerns of our cast and crew.”
Deadline reports that the cast and crew of the series had been informed of the decision Tuesday morning.
On Monday it had been announced that the upcoming season of “House of Cards” would be the series’ last.
According to Deadline, the accusations of “Star Trek: Discovery” star Anthony Rapp that a drunk Kevin Spacey made aggressive sexual advances toward him, knowing he was just 14 years old at the time, were instrumental in steering Netflix to end the show in a decision that reportedly was made today.
While Netflix and MCR, had previously been mulling over concluding the critically acclaimed political thriller with the upcoming season, key cast and creative staff were only informed of the decision in a series of phone calls on Monday.
In addition, Netflix and MRC released a joint statement in which both companies admit being “deeply troubled” by the situation involving the “House of Cards” star.
“Media Rights Capital and Netflix are deeply troubled by last night’s news concerning Kevin Spacey,” reads the statement. “In response to last night’s revelations, executives from both of our companies arrived in Baltimore this afternoon to meet with our cast and crew to ensure that they continue to feel safe and supported. As previously scheduled, Kevin Spacey is not working on set at this time.”
Rapp was 14 when he appeared alongside Spacey, then 26, on Broadway in “A Long Day’s Journey Into Night” in the mid-1980s, and Sunday divulged an incident he alleges took place during a party in Spacey’s apartment.
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“I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually,” Rapp said of Spacey, admitting he still finds the alleged incident “deeply confusing,” adding: “My stomach churns. I still to this day can’t wrap my head around so many aspects of it.”
Spacey responded in a statement in which he officially came out as gay while claiming to have no memory of the incident. “I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago,” wrote Spacey in his statement. “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.”
Netflix and MRC have yet to reveal what affect, if any, the still-expanding scandal could have on Spacey’s ongoing involvement in the upcoming final season of “House of Cards”.
Meanwhile, another TV hit has been forced to do some last-minute editing in order to delete a reference to Spacey, with Tuesday’s episode of “This Is Us” removing the brief mention of Spacey.
As TV Line reports, the episode features a flashback to 2008, with struggling actor Kevin (Justin Hartley) having a tough time finding an acting gig when his roommate reveals he’s booked a role in a new movie starring Spacey. While the episode that had been made been available for TV critics to screen included that line, the version that will air will no longer include it
“In light of recent events, the producers have decided to remove the brief reference to Kevin Spacey,” reads a statement from 20th Century Fox Television, which produces the series for NBC.
