Liam Neeson is among several actors calling for Kevin Spacey’s return to Hollywood, following the Channel 4 documentary Spacey Unmasked.
The American actor, who was acquitted of multiple sexual offences in the UK last year, was recently the subject of a two-part series which aired on May 6th and 7th.
Now, the Irish actor has joined a host of famous faces who are campaigning for Kevin to return to acting “after seven years of exile”.
The Channel 4 documentary featured testimony from men “regarding events they say took place between 1976 and 2013, and relate to what they describe as unwanted sexual behaviour” from Spacey – which he has denied.
In statements to The Telegraph, Liam joined the likes of Sharon Stone and Stephen Fry who have come out in support of the 64-year-old in the wake of the docu-series.
Liam told the newspaper: “Kevin is a good man and a man of character. Personally speaking, our industry needs him and misses him greatly.”
Meanwhile, Sharon said: “I can’t wait to see Kevin back at work. He is a genius. He is so elegant and fun, generous to a fault and knows more about our craft than most of us ever will.”
She continued that it was clear aspiring actors had “wanted and want to be around him.”
“It’s terrible that they are blaming him for not being able to come to terms with themselves for using him and negotiating with themselves because they didn’t get their secret agendas,” the 66-year-old added.
Stephen Fry said Kevin was “clumsy and inappropriate” but to “devote a whole documentary to accusations that simply do not add up to crimes… how can that be considered proportionate and justified?”
The 66-year-old said Kevin’s reputation had already been “wrecked”, before adding: “Surely it is wrong to continue to batter a reputation on the strength of assertion and rhetoric rather than evidence and proof? Unless I’m missing something, I think he has paid the price.”
The Channel 4 series is described as a “forensic look at a man who was once one of the most admired and respected actors in the world.”
“Featuring never-seen-before interviews and archive, the series examines his life from childhood to early success on Broadway and subsequent meteoric rise to stardom.”
“Kevin Spacey’s spectacular fall from grace came amid allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior,” the description continues.
“In 2023 Spacey was acquitted of sexual offenses against four men in a U.K. trial. This two-part series will investigate Spacey’s conduct and talks to multiple men unconnected to that case about their experiences with Kevin Spacey, almost all of whom have never spoken before.”
Earlier this month, during an interview with Dan Wooton, Kevin denied accusations of any illegal behaviour ahead of the release of the documentary.
“Were there times when I would flirt with some of the people who were involved in those programmes who were in their 20s? Yes,” he said.
“Did I ever hook up with another actor? Yes. Did I make a clumsy pass at someone who wasn’t interested as it turned out? Yes.”
“But I was not employing them, I was not their boss, I was oftentimes just swimming in for an hour here or there as a well-known actor to lend support… to answer questions.”
“That may not have been the best decision and it is not one that I would do today, but it happened. It wasn’t illegal, and nor has it ever been alleged to have been illegal.”
The actor said he has struggled to find work since being acquitted of all criminal charges.
He added: “I can’t go through this again, allowing myself to be baselessly attacked without defending myself.”
In July 2023 at London’s Southwark Crown Court, the Oscar-winning actor was found not guilty of nine charges of sexual assault, indecent assault and causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity.
Kevin had been accused of sexually assaulting four men in the period between 2001 and 2013.
The American Beauty star, who was artistic director at The Old Vic theatre in London between 2004 and 2015, was accused of drugging and performing a sex act on a former aspiring actor while he slept.
He was also accused of several assaults on another man – a driver who claimed the actor grabbed his crotch so hard on one occasion that he “almost come off the road”.
Another man claimed Kevin subjected him to a “barrage” of “vile” sexual abuse before grabbing his crotch “like a cobra” at a West End event.
The fourth man said actor kissed his neck and told him to “be cool”, before grabbing his crotch.
Kevin denied all charges, and described the allegations against him as “madness” and a “stab in the back”.
The acquittals came after he won a $40 million civil lawsuit brought by fellow actor Anthony Rapp in October 2022.
Rapp had accused Spacey of sexual battery, which he claimed took place in 1986, but a New York jury dismissed the claim.
