Kriti Mehrotra
Although Anthony Rapp is an undeniably incredible actor, singer, writer, and performer, he is actually most known for accusing once-renowned professional Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct. The truth is it was during the #MeToo movement in 2017 that he first came forward with his claims, as explored in ID’s ‘Spacey Unmasked,’ but the alleged incident had transpired back in 1986. In other words, he swore this then-rising actor had made inappropriate advances toward him at 26 despite knowing he was merely 14 and had only just kickstarted his career in entertainment.
Anthony Rapp Alleged He Was Assaulted by Kevin Spacey
It was reportedly back when Anthony was just a young boy growing up in Joliet, Illinois, that he first developed a keen interest in acting, only for it to continue expanding as the years passed. He thus began participating in community theater almost as soon as he was able, and it resulted in him gaining such exposure he actually landed a part in Broadway’s ‘Precious Sons’ in 1986. Though little did he know his success here would inadvertently lead him to Kevin Spacey at a party while he also enjoyed his big break with a supporting role in ‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night.’
According to Anthony’s own account, he was at a post-show event of some kind with a 17-year-old friend from way back home when Kevin approached and invited them to a popular nightclub. “I don’t know how — We got in through the front door,” he once told Buzzfeed. “We didn’t have to show ID. And we sat with him in some VIP area… It was a fun night just talking and hanging out.” However, by the end, this big screen actor had asked the teen to come to a party he was hosting at his Manhattan apartment a few days later as it’d be a great networking opportunity for him.
Hence, Anthony went, only to get bored relatively quickly since he was the sole nonadult there — yet, this didn’t worry him as he’d been in several such similar situations before as a child actor. That’s how he ended up wandering into a bedroom, where he remained until well past midnight just watching television while sitting at the edge of the bed so as to not disturb anything/anyone. It was only then that he noticed Kevin standing at the bedroom door, making him realize the party was over and everyone else had long cleared out; in other words, he was truly alone with Kevin.
Anthony has since expressed: “My memory was that I thought, ‘Oh, everybody’s gone. Well, yeah, I should probably go home.’ [Yet, Kevin] sort of stood in the doorway, kind of swaying [as well as blocking the path out]. My impression when he came in the room was that he was drunk… [He never said a word, he just] picked me up like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold. But I don’t, like, squirm away initially, because I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ And then he lays down on top of me… He was trying to seduce me. I don’t know if I would have used that language. But I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually.”
Per Anthony himself, what followed was Kevin pressing into him and squeezing his arms, all the while he fought to get away until he was successful — he’d initially frozen, but not for long. He said he ultimately managed to rush into the bathroom to hide, which is where he saw a picture of this actor-producer with a man, thought maybe he was gay and gradually calmed down. He added, “I opened the door, and I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to go home now.’ He followed me to the front door… and as I opened the door to leave, he was leaning on the [frame]… And he was like, ‘Are you sure you wanna go?’ I said, ‘Yes, good night,’ and then I did leave.”
That was the last time Anthony ever saw Kevin in person, yet he still vividly remembers he’d turned around on his way home with the sole thought of “What was that? What am I supposed to do with it? What does it mean?…” He then continued, “The older I get, and the more I know, I feel very fortunate that something worse didn’t happen. At the same time, the older I get, the more I can’t believe it. I could never imagine [that] anyone else I know would do something like that to a 14-year-old boy.” Nevertheless, in the time to follow, this child actor didn’t really discuss what’d happened with anyone as it would’ve opened up a conversation about his own sexual orientation, which he wasn’t ready for back then.
Therefore, as Kevin continued making a name for himself in the industry, Anthony did the same while also remaining quiet but with anger, frustration, as well as incredulity boiling deep beneath his skin. It thus took the #MeeToo movement and the brutally honest experiences shared by Tarana Burke and Lupita Nyong’o in particular to inspire this ‘Rent’ superstar to come forward with his own truth too. He even went as far as to file a $40 million civil lawsuit against his abuser in the hopes of closure, but all the latter did in response was post a statement claiming he did not remember the encounter but was “beyond horrified to hear [Anthony’s] story… if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.”
Anthony Rapp is Now a Man of Many Hats
Although a jury deemed Kevin not liable in connection to Anthony Rapp’s alleged assault in October 2022, the latter is genuinely glad he came forward because it did yield something positive. The ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ actor told Variety’s ‘Stagecraft’ podcast, “It’s worth it in the sense that my coming forward helped pave the way for others to come forward and has helped protect people. And there’s a part of my 14-year-old self that got to come full circle in a way that I didn’t know was possible.” Then, making it clear he’s gradually healing, he added, “It was only really in the last few years that so many of us started to talk about ourselves and how [these incidents] affected us, and started to really start to try to square that circle and patch wounds that we didn’t even recognize as wounds.”
Coming to other aspects of Anthony’s personal as well as professional standing, we’re happy to report this 52-year-old New York resident is currently thriving in every way, shape, and form. After all, not only has he since published a memoir about ‘Rent’ plus his relationship with his mother titled ‘Without You’ and starred in its Off-Broadway eponymous adaptation, but he’s also a family man. This actor, director, singer, writer, and SAG-AFTRA National plus New York Local Board Member with over 70 entertainment credits under his belt as of writing is actually happily married to leadership/life coach Ken Ithiphol, with whom he proudly shares two sons — Rai Larson Ithiphol plus Keony Lee Ithiphol — via surrogacy.
Read More: Randall “Randy” Fowler: Where is Kevin Spacey’s Brother Now?
