On the same day that another accuser came forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Kevin Spacey, news broke that the actor would be completely cut out of an upcoming film. Not only that, but filmmakers would also take the extraordinary step of replacing Spacey with another actor, even when the movie is just weeks away from opening and a trailer (see clip below) was already released last month.
The Oscar-winning Spacey, 58, had a supporting role in the Ridley Scott film "All the Money in the World," which is slated to open on December 22.
But after multiple allegations of sexual assault against Spacey surfaced in recent days, Scott and the film's crew and producers decided that they would reshoot each of Spacey's scenes with another Oscar-winning actor, Christopher Plummer, Deadline reported Wednesday night.
Spacey had played oil magnate Jean Paul Getty opposite Mark Wahlberg as Fletcher Chase and Michelle Williams as Gail Harris, Getty's former daughter-in-law. The plot of the film, based on a 1995 John Pearson book, follows the 1973 kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Plummer was actually the first choice to play the part, but studio executives wanted to go with "a bigger name."
The Deadline report said Scott was expected to start the re-shoot of Spacey's scenes right away, with the aim of keeping the Dec. 22 release date. Spacey had reportedly spent up to 10 days filming the scenes.
Sony Pictures had already pulled the film out of a planned screening at AFI Fest and Variety reported that a planned Oscar campaign for Spacey's supporting actor role in the film had been nixed in favor of focusing on Williams and Wahlberg.
"... Given the current allegations surrounding one of its actors and out of respect for those impacted, it would be inappropriate to celebrate at a gala at this difficult time," Sony Pictures said in a statement.
Earlier on Wednesday, former Boston news anchor Heather Unruh announced at a press conference that she had filed a police report last week after Spacey, a South Orange native, allegedly groped her 18-year-old son at a Nantucket bar last year.
Unruh's claim followed a series of accusers, including Harry Dreyfuss, son of Richard Dreyfuss, and an unnamed artist, who alleged Spacey had groped or sexually assaulted them when they were teenagers.
The first man to come forward in recent weeks, actor Anthony Rapp, told BuzzFeed that Spacey made sexual advances towards him in 1986, when he was 14 and Spacey was 26.
Spacey was slammed for a statement he issued in response to Rapp's allegations, with critics saying he only came out as gay to deflect from the charges of sexual misconduct. ("I choose now to live as a gay man," he said. The actor said he didn't remember the incident with Rapp, but apologized, saying that if it had happened, the encounter would have translated to "deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.")
Rapp's claims emerged in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, which has moved many women and men to come forward with allegations against powerful men in entertainment and media.
One of the latest allegations is that Charlie Sheen raped Corey Haim on the set of the 1986 film "Lucas" when he was 19 and Haim was 13. Sheen denied the allegation, which Dominick Brascia, a friend of the late Haim, had made in a National Enquirer story.
Allegations against "Transparent" actor Jeffrey Tambor are also being investigated at Amazon, Deadline reports, involving claims of "implied inappropriate behavior" from his former assistant. He denies the allegations. (Amazon Studios president Roy Price recently resigned after sexual harassment allegations against him came to light.)
In recent days, Netflix announced it would not move forward with any version of its series "House of Cards" that involved Spacey after eight crew members told CNN that the actor's alleged tendency to inappropriately touch male employees was well known. A production assistant said Spacey stuck his hand down his pants as they drove to set.
Soon after, BuzzFeed reported that Spacey's publicist, Staci Wolfe, and his agency, CAA, had dropped him.
Spacey had already been accused of sexual misconduct by actor Robert Cavazos at London's Old Vic theater, where he had worked as an artistic director, and by director Tony Montana, who says Spacey groped him at a Los Angeles bar. The unnamed artist who claimed Spacey sexually assaulted him told Vulture he had a sexual relationship with Spacey at 14, one that ended after Spacey's alleged rape attempt.
In an essay for BuzzFeed, the younger Dreyfuss said Spacey had groped him while his father was in the same room reading ines for a play at the Old Vic in Spacey's apartment.
Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AmyKup or on Facebook.