The feud between actors Kevin Spacey and Guy Pearce has escalated following Pearce’s emotional claims about inappropriate behaviour on the set of L.A. Confidential.
Pearce, 57, recently spoke on The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, stating that Spacey, 65, targeted him with harassment during filming of the 1997 thriller.
Pearce described Spacey as “quite an aggressive man” although he added: “Even though I probably was a victim to a degree; I was certainly not a victim by any means to the extent that other people have been to sexual predators.”
He said the only times he felt “safe” on set were when fellow Australian actor Simon Baker was present. “Kevin focused on Simon because he was 10 times prettier than I am,” he said.
Pearce’s revelations sparked a furious response from Spacey, who took to X to defend himself. In a video statement, Spacey slammed Pearce for airing grievances in the media rather than addressing them privately.
“Guy Pearce, I’ve now read the comments that you made about me, and while I would have preferred not to have to play this out in the media, you obviously have your own reasons for wanting to do exactly that,” Spacey said.
“You really want to know what my response is? Grow up,” Spacey said, adding, “Did you also, by the way, tell the press that a year after we shot ‘L.A. Confidential’ you flew to Savannah, Georgia, while I was shooting Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, just to spend time with me. I mean, did you tell the press that, too? Or does that not fit into the victim narrative you have going?”
Grow up, Guy Pearce. You are not a victim. pic.twitter.com/33paGTj4Aq
— Kevin Spacey (@KevinSpacey) February 18, 2025
Spacey went further, suggesting Pearce may have “led him on” during their time together. “I apologise that I didn’t get the message that you don’t like spending time with me. I mean, maybe there was another reason. I don’t know. But that doesn’t make any sense that you would have just been leading me on, right?” he said.
He mocked Pearce for waiting 28 years to speak out. “Here you are now on a mission some 28 years later, after I’d been through hell and back, to do what? Just in time to stop the bad guy, huh? Is that what’s going on here? What took you so long? Did your horse run out of gas? I mean, you want to have a conversation? I’m happy to do so. Any time, any place. We can even do it here, live on X if you like. I’ve got nothing to hide. But, guy, you need to grow up. You are not a victim.”
The two actors’ history dates back to the mid-1990s when they worked together on L.A. Confidential. In his interview, Pearce recalled hearing about other allegations against Spacey years later, which led him to revisit his own experiences. “I broke down and sobbed,” Pearce said, realizing the impact the events had on him.
Spacey, who has not worked in Hollywood since the 2017 sexual misconduct allegations surfaced, has denied all claims of inappropriate behavior. Though he was cleared in legal cases in the US and UK, his reputation continues to be clouded by accusations of harassment.
