A Kevin Spacey reference in Tuesday night’s episode of “This Is Us” was removed last minute in response to recent allegations of sexual misconduct involving the “House of Cards” actor.
The episode, the fifth of the second season, flashed back to 2008 giving viewers a look at Kevin Pearson (Justin Hartley) struggling to break into the acting business. In the scene in “The 20’s,” Kevin learns his roommate has landed a gig on an upcoming moving alongside Spacey.
“In light of recent events, the producers have decided to remove the brief reference to Kevin Spacey,” 20th Century Fox Television said in a statement.
The “This Is Us” creators went back in time to slightly alter the scene, changing Kevin’s roommate’s role to be one alongside Christian Bale instead. (If only they could go back and rescue Jack from whatever doom is impending, too).
The NBC sitcom began filming its second season in June, four months before Spacey became the focus of the latest sexual harassment scandal to plague Hollywood. On Oct. 29, actor Anthony Rapp alleged Spacey had made a sexual advance toward him during a party at his apartment in 1986 when Rapp was only 14 years old. Spacey was 26 at the time. In response to Rapp’s allegations, published in Buzzfeed, Spacey posted a statement on Twitter later that day saying that he was “beyond horrified” about the actor’s claims and didn’t remember the encounter. He continued to apologize for his alleged “deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.”
Two days after the news broke, Netflix suspended production on the sixth and final season of Spacey’s hit series “House of Cards.”
