as Netflix suspends 'House of Cards'

Netflix has suspended production on the sixth and final season of its premiere political drama series House of Cards following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct against star Kevin Spacey.
Netflix and Media Rights Capital, which produces the show, issued a joint statement to Deadline Tuesday confirming production on the series had been suspended indefinitely.

“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,” both companies said in the statement.

Netflix had announced Monday that it would go ahead with a sixth season and final season of Cards, the series that served as the streaming giant’s first real foray into original scripted programming when it premiered in 2013. According to TVLine, production on the sixth season began in Maryland in early October.

In an interview with Buzzfeed published Sunday, actor Anthony Rapp alleged that Spacey had made a sexual advance on him at a party in New York City in 1986, when he was just 14 years old and Spacey was 26. In a two-paragraph statement posted to his Twitter account late Sunday night, Spacey apologized to Rapp but did not deny the allegation, instead saying he could not remember the alleged encounter.

Spacey also came out as gay in the statement, drawing the ire of several gay celebrities including Billy Eichner and Zachary Quinto, as well as condemnation from LGBT advocacy organization GLAAD, which urged the media to focus on Spacey’s accuser rather than on his coming-out.

Other allegations of misconduct have since been leveled at the actor.

According to Deadline, representatives from Netflix and Media Rights Capital arrived on the House of Cards set Monday to meet with cast and crew “to ensure that they continue to feel safe and supported.”

Spacey earned five Emmy nominations and won a Golden Globe for his role as Frank Underwood on the Netflix series.

The two-time Oscar-winner is just one of several actors who have been accused of sexual misconduct in recent days, joining actor-comedian Andy Dick and former Entourage star Jeremy Piven. Numerous entertainment and media figures have been accused of misconduct in the wake of decades of allegations of harassment and abuse against movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, which were first detailed in a New York Times report in early October

Source: AFP