The Big Picture
- Kevin Spacey returns to headlines with the release date announcement of his new film, Control, after being tried on sexual assault charges.
- The film features Spacey in a voice role as an enigmatic figure seeking revenge, sparking controversy over his casting.
- Director Gene Fallaize defends the decision to cast Spacey, stating that he is a nice guy and would cast him again, despite criticism.
Two weeks following the verdict of Kevin Spacey‘s UK sexual assault trial, in which the actor was cleared of all nine charges levied against him, he returns to headlines as a release date for his new film has been announced. The film, entitled Control, was written and directed Gene Fallaize, and stars Spacey in a major voice role. Despite pushback regarding the controversial actor’s casting, the director has continued to assert that he has no regrets, calling Spacey “a nice guy” and reiterating that he “would do it all over again.” The film will be released in both the UK and US on December 15, according to Variety.
Spacey does not appear physically in the film, but stars as an enigmatic figure known as simply The Voice, as he remotely takes control of the UK home secretary’s car in an act of revenge for her public misdeeds. Joining her in the hijacked vehicle is the prime minister’s daughter, as the car speeds into traffic, hitting a pedestrian. In a line that strikes a somewhat provacative tone given the actor’s history, the recently released trailer for the film sees The Voice tell her “confession is good for the soul. I think your soul could really do with that… I am your judge and jury, and I find you guilty.”
Spacey recorded his part in the film in London last December while awaiting trail. Spacey was faced with claims of sexual and indecent assault. Following the not guilty verdict, Fallaize told Variety last month “the only people that know everything are the ones that were in that courtroom and they decided he was not guilty.” In response to criticism of Spacey’s casting, he added “these people that are saying – if they’re saying – that we’re whitewashing him or enabling him to come back, what facts have they got to contradict the jury? I don’t regret casting Kevin and I would do it all over again.” Of Spacey, the director said “he is naturally quiet and comes across as quite shy. He seemed fine. I mean, I didn’t know Kevin before all of this so I can’t say what he was like in comparison to what he was like before. But you know, he just seemed like a nice guy.”
Spacey Has Maintained a Low Profile
Spacey first faced allegations of sexual assault back in 2017 from Anthony Rapp, but was soon met with more from other individuals. Following the controversy, Spacey’s career stalled as he was dropped from the hit Netflix show House of Cards, while he was replaced by Christopher Plummer in reshoots of Ridley Scott‘s All the Money in the World. In 2022, he appeared in his first role since the sexual misconduct allegations, in Franco Nero‘s The Man Who Drew God.
Control will be released in the US and the UK on December 15. You can watch the trailer for the film below:
