House of Cards has suspended production indefinitely, following the sexual harassment charges leveled against Kevin Spacey, who is both the star and executive producer of the series.
In a statement, Netflix announced that “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.”
This news comes a mere two days after Anthony Rapp, a relatively fresh face in Hollywood who recently began starring in Star Trek, told Buzzfeed News that Spacey made very overt sexual advances towards him when he was only 14. Spacey was quick to issue an apology, and used the opportunity to discuss his own sexuality, which immediately drew heavy criticism from those who saw him as wielding his sexuality as a tool to escape from the gravity of these accusations.
Netflix had originally responded to the issue by stating that they would discontinue House of Cards after its sixth season. But now, even the existence of a sixth season appears to be in doubt. Apparently, executives from Netflix and MRC travelled to Baltimore to consult with the cast and crew of House of Cards on Monday to ascertain whether or not those present felt “safe and supported.”
Other news recently broke that Netflix was considering multiple spinoffs, including one about Michael Kelly’s character, Doug Stamper, who is Frank Underwood’s (Spacey) chief of staff.
Beau Willimon, the former showrunner for House of Cards, found the allegations “deeply troubling” but also found it important to point out that “During the time I worked with Kevin Spacey on House of Cards, I neither witnessed nor was aware of any inappropriate behavior on set or off. That said, I take reports of such behavior seriously and this is no exception. I feel for Mr. Rapp and I support his courage.”
Spacey has been involved in multiple upcoming projects, including another Netflix project about Gore Vidal. All of these are now in jeopardy.
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