Kevin Spacey was being honored at the Lucca Film Festival, where he received a career award and world-premiered his new film, the historical thriller “1780.”
Quite honestly, if you believe Kevin Spacey has made a comeback to acting, that’s probably because you live in Italy. Italians have given him the kinds of opportunities Hollywood has refused to offer since the allegations came out back in 2017.
The actor thanked Franco Nero, who directed him in “L’uomo che disegnò Dio”: “I am grateful to Franco. He called me when no one wanted me and said that this movie is just an appetizer.”
Spacey would soon return to Rome to shoot “The Contract,” financed with Italian money, and he’s expected to head back to the Italian city this fall to begin production on “Minimarket,” a web series for Italy’s official streaming platform, RaiPlay.
When asked which directors he would like to work with, the star name dropped "Luca Guadagnino, Paolo Sorrentino and Alice Rohrwacher. And I'll also put Martin Scorsese on it, I always hope he calls me.”
Sadly for Spacey, I highly doubt any of those names will be calling anytime soon.
Last year, Spacey mentioned that he was attempting an acting comeback, convinced that people would start hiring him again for more acting projects after a few legal victories in court.
Although Spacey appears to have emerged from multiple legal wins, Hollywood still isn’t willing to hire him. His name has been tarnished. These days, for many in the industry, once you’re accused, it’s very hard to escape that shadow, even if the allegations turn out to be false or unwarranted. Whether Spacey is guilty or not, it doesn’t seem to matter.
Last year, a handful of Hollywood actors, including Liam Neeson, Sharon Stone, F. Murray Abraham, and Stephen Fry, came out in Spacey’s defense, stating that he deserved a comeback in Hollywood. That campaign, however, clearly didn’t succeed. Spacey seems to still be persona non grata, his comeback vehicles have all been financed outside the Hollywood sandbox.
Spacey was once considered one of the great living actors, with career highlights including marquee roles in “American Beauty,” “The Usual Suspects,” “Se7en,” “Glengarry Glen Ross,” “L.A. Confidential,” “The Negotiator,” and “House of Cards.”