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Kevin Spacey’s U.K. trial on sexual assault charges opens in London
London – Kevin Spacey’s trial began Wednesday in London, with the Hollywood actor facing charges of sexual assault, indecent assault and a more serious offense of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Spacey has pleaded not guilty to all of the 12 charges against him.
The 63-year-old arrived at London’s Southwark Crown Court and smiled and waved at media gathered outside the building as he waked in.
As the proceedings began, the judge laid out ground rules for members of the jury, acknowledging the case had “attracted a lot of media coverage,” and urging jurists to “rely on what you see and hear in this courtroom.”
The trial is expected to last four weeks, and little more was likely to come out of Wednesday’s opening hearing. The prosecution was to address the court on Friday.
Dan Kitwood/Getty
Spacey has repeatedly denied the allegations made by four men who are now in their 30s and 40s over acts they accuse Spacey of committing during a 12-year period between 2001 and 2013. Some of the charges date back to a period when the actor was the artistic director at London’s Old Vic Theatre, a position he held for more than a decade before his departure in 2015.
The alleged victims cannot be identified under English law.
An internal 2017 investigation by the theater resulted in 20 anonymous claims of alleged inappropriate behavior by Spacey during his time as its artistic director.
The Oscar-winner’s “stardom and status at The Old Vic may have prevented people, and in particular junior staff or young actors, from feeling that they could speak up or raise a hand for help,” a statement from the Old Vic said at the time.
Spacey’s glittering Hollywood career largely came to an end in 2017 when actor Anthony Rapp publicly accused him of sexual misconduct in a separate case, alleging that Spacey had targeted him when he was just 14 years old.
In October last year, a New York court dismissed a $40 million civil suit brought against Spacey by Rapp for alleged sexual misconduct dating back to the late 1980s. A judge had ruled separately that Rapp brought the case too late for criminal charges.
Charges of indecent assault and battery were also dropped against the actor in a separate case in Massachusetts in 2019, after a young man who had accused him declined to testify in the case.
In an interview earlier this month with German magazine Zeit, Spacey insisted that it was his work that “will be remembered,” and he expressed a desire to revive his career should he be cleared of the charges against him in the U.K.
“I know that there are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges in London. The second that happens, they’re ready to move forward,” Spacey said.
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Hearing the voice of Sir Laurence Olivier catch you up on work memos may not offer the same thrill as watching the acclaimed English actor on stage or screen, but it could make your morning commute more interesting.
That’s the vision of artificial intelligence startup ElevenLabs, which this week announced that fans of Hollywood icons such as Judy Garland and James Dean can now listen to the voices of the deceased film stars narrate books, articles and other digital text.
The company said it had reached agreements with the estates of Olivier, Garland, Dean and Burt Reynolds to add their voices to a library of AI-generated voices on ElevenLab’s new Reader App. The product lets users listen to text on your phone, with the actors’ voices available for individual streaming.
ElevenLabs did not provide details about any financial compensation it is offering to the actors’ estates.
“We deeply respect their legacy and are honored to have their voices as part of our platform,” Dustin Blank, head of partnerships at ElevenLabs said in a blog post. “Adding them to our growing list of narrators marks a major step forward in our mission of making content accessible in any language and voice.”
Liza Minnelli, Judy Garland’s daughter and the representative of her estate, said in the post that her family is excited to “see our mother’s voice available to the countless millions of people who love her.”
Using AI to recreate a version of someone’s voice has drawn negative attention after being used in nefarious ways, including the creation earlier this year of a phony robocall from President Joe Biden urging people not to vote in New Hampshire’s presidential primary.
In another incident, actress Scarlett Johansson is May said she was “shocked, angered and in disbelief” after discovering that a voice option on OpenAI’s ChatGPT app sounded like her. Johansson had declined OpenAI founder Sam Altman’s offer to voice ChatGPT’s text-to-speech product. Altman said the voice is not Johansson’s.
AI was a key issue in the SAG-AFTRA strike last year. A new actor contract includes limits on artificial intelligence. Producers for TV and film must get consent from actors to use a digital replica, and performers are also entitled to compensation for using AI to create their virtual likeness.
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Candidates in pivotal French legislative elections drop out in tactical move ahead of final vote
Paris – As France prepares for a decisive second-round vote Sunday, political parties from all persuasions are scrambling to secure seats in the National Assembly. However, more than 200 candidates – mostly from left and centrist parties – have dropped out in a tactical move to block the far right.
Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN) party and its allies led the first round vote with 33.4%. However, after the significant number of withdrawals to avoid splitting the vote against the far right, it’s unlikely the RN can secure an absolute majority in this second round and form a government.
The RN is anti-immigration and has been accused of being antisemitic and anti-Muslim. It wants to roll back the power of the European Union in France and has threatened to pull the country out of the U.S.-led NATO military alliance.
There are 577 seats in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament. Just 76 deputies were elected with an outright majority in the first round so the majority of seats are still up for grabs. A total of 289 seats is needed for that crucial absolute majority.
Final opinion polls on Friday predicted the RN and its allies would again lead the field – but would now only secure between 175 and 205 seats, well below the majority needed to form a government on their own, and below predictions in the immediate aftermath of the first round. However, that is more than double the number of seats held before these elections.
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The leftist group, Nouveau Front populaire, or New Popular Front, is predicted to take between 145 and 175 seats. That grouping of traditional left, hard left and green parties was hastily formed after President Emmanuel Macron called snap elections in June.
Macron hoped to rally voters against the far right after the RN did well in early June elections for the European parliament, which governs the European Union.
However, political analyst Douglas Webber told CBS News: “President Macron made a colossal error in judgment”.
His Ensemble – Together – centrist coalition for these parliamentary elections is tipped to win just 145-175 seats.
Polls predict voter turnout for this second round will be as high as 65%. That’s similar to the numbers for the first round on June 30. Turnout was unusually high as many voters said they either wanted to block the far-right, or just get rid of Macron’s government.
“Right now, we have big problems with the right wing,” said one young woman after the first round vote. “We want more democracy, you know, we don’t want people to feel afraid or scared about living in France.”
These elections have been marred by attacks on candidates. The interior ministry said 51 candidates or party activists – from different parties – were attacked during the short campaign. For Sunday’s vote, 30,000 police have been drafted in case of violence during polling or after the results are announced.
Initial predictions will be available shortly after the polls close in France on Sunday night. However, in the absence of an outright majority for one party or grouping, it may be days – or even weeks – before a government emerges.
RN president Jordan Bardella – who wants to be prime minister – has suggested that he would refuse to form a government if his party and allies do not win an outright majority. He argued that without a majority, his government could achieve little and, therefore, would not be worth it. Whether that is simply posturing to encourage all far-right supporters to vote in large numbers remains to be seen.
There is talk of a rainbow coalition of traditional left and right parties and centrists. But Macron made it clear on Wednesday at a meeting with his Council of Ministers, that blocking the far right did not mean that he would name a government led by the hard left LFI – La France Insoumise, or France Unbowed – led by Jean-Luc Melenchon. It remains to be seen if there would be enough deputies without the two extremes to form a government.
There is a third option. President Macron could decide to postpone forming a new government until after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which open on July 26. He could ask the current Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to continue in a caretaker role and then deal with the fallout of the elections once the Games are over.
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