Kevin Spacey smiled and waved as he arrived at Southwark crown court in advance of his trial on sexual assault charges.
The 63-year-old faces 12 charges of sexual assault, indecent assault and causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent against four men between 2001 and 2013. The Oscar-winning actor has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
He arrived at the court in a taxi on Wednesday, dressed in a navy suit, a light blue shirt and a pink tie, and greeted people who had assembled outside.
The Hollywood star entered the glass-fronted dock at 10.30am and spoke only to confirm his name.
The case, listed under his full name, Kevin Spacey Fowler, is being heard before Mr Justice Wall, who told prospective jurors before the panel was selected: “I’m sure the defendant will be gratified to know that many of you know his name and have seen his films.”
The judge instructed the jury – made up of three women and nine men, with two reserve jurors selected to sit through the opening of the prosecution – to rely only on the evidence in the case and not to make their own inquiries.
“This is a case that quite obviously has, and will continue to, attract quite a lot of media coverage,” he said.
“You must try to avoid such coverage where you can. There is a risk that if you pay heed to what is reported on this trial you might be, probably unwittingly, influenced.”
In May last year, the Crown Prosecution Service authorised four counts of sexual assault and one count of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent against Mr Spacey.
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The charges related to alleged offences against three men – now in their 30s and 40s – in England between 2005 and 2013. Mr Spacey pleaded not guilty to the charges at the Old Bailey in July.
In November, the actor was charged with seven additional offences – three of indecent assault, three of sexual assault and one count of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent – against a fourth man between 2001 and 2005. He pleaded not guilty to the charges at a hearing in January.
Mr Spacey was artistic director of the Old Vic theatre in London between 2004 and 2015. He grew up in California but lived in London for more than a decade, previously saying the city had become his home. He now lives in Baltimore in the United States.
Mr Spacey has won two Oscars – the best supporting actor award for The Usual Suspects in 1996 and for best actor in 2000 for American Beauty. In recent years, he was best known for his role playing the fictional US president Frank Underwood in Netflix’s House of Cards. He also appeared in the movies Seven, LA Confidential and Baby Driver. – Guardian