Denzel Washington says rumors about Oscar winning actor have existed for decades

Kevin Spacey has had his share of ugly headlines across the past couple of years, but Denzel Washington recently said rumors swirled about him a long time before those reports popped up.

In fact, Washington said, there was talk decades before the “House of Cards” actor, 65, was accused of sexual assault and harassment.

Washington made the revelation in a five-part, first-person essay written in a Nov. 19 issue of Esquire.

Washington remembered attending the 2000 Academy Awards due to his nomination for Best Actor for his performance in “The Hurricane.” While there, he recalled watching Spacey win the award instead.

“I’m sure I went home and drank that night. I had to,” Washington, who also opened up in the piece about his decision to quit drinking and live a sober lifestyle over the past decade. “I don’t want to sound like, ‘Oh, he won my Oscar, or anything like that. It wasn’t like that.’

“And you know, there was talk in the town about what was going on over there on that side of the street, and that’s between him and God,” Washington added. “I ain’t got nothing to do with that. I pray for him. That’s between him and his maker.”

Spacey won the Best Actor Oscar for his role in 1999’s “American Beauty” after he won Best Supporting Actor in 1996 for the movie, “The Usual Suspects.” 17 years later, controversy struck and heavily impacted the actor’s career when Anthony Rapp became the first person to come out and publicly accuse him of sexual assault, with more accusers who came forward.

In 2022, a jury in New York found that Spacey wasn’t liable for battery in relation to Rapp’s accusations, and the following year, a U.K. court found him not guilty of nine counts of alleged sexual assault.

Allegations against Spacey have continued to mount, much like in documentaries such as Investigation Discovery’s “Spacey Unmasked,” which was released in May.

Spacey has denied all claims and has received an onslaught of criticism after coming out as gay in response to Rapps initial accusations in 2017.