Kevin Spacey makes surprise appearance at Oxford lecture on cancel culture, performs Shakespeare
Kevin Spacey received a standing ovation on Monday night during a surprise appearance at a University of Oxford lecture where he performed a scene from William Shakespeare's "Timon of Athens."
The Oscar-winning actor, who was acquitted of sexual assault charges by a U.K. jury in July, came to the event honoring the late conservative philosopher Roger Scruton, according to Variety.
In a clip from the event, The Spectator associate editor Douglas Murray introduced Spacey at the Sheldonian Theatre. He discussed how students could learn more about cancel culture from Shakespeare's work.
'In an era of cancellation and defenestration, we sometimes forget that we both cannot go on like this and that we have been here before. We know this because our greatest writers and artists have addressed this question in their own times," he said, according to Variety.
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LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 26: Kevin Spacey speaks to press after leaving court at Southwark Crown Court on July 26, 2023 in London, England. (Chris J Ratcliffe/Getty Images)
Spacey then delivered the monologue, working his way through the audience before shouting the closing line, "I am sick of this false world and will love it not!"
He then rushed out of the room. When Spacey returned, the crowd welcomed him back with a standing ovation.
Murray would later tell The Times that the scene performed by Spacey is about what happens when a society drops a person for "no reason."
"It's something that has been on Kevin's mind, as it was on Roger Scruton's mind, so I said I want him to be back on stage in the U.K.," Murray added.
SPACEY GOT AWAY WITH SEXUAL ASSAULTS BECAUSE OF HIS CELEBRITY STATUS, PROSECUTOR ARGUES
Kevin Spacey departing Southwark Crown Court on July 25, 2023 in London, England. The actor was on trial in the UK, accused of sexual assaults on men during his time as Artistic Director of The Old Vic Theatre. He was acquitted. (Neil Mockford/Getty Images)
Spacey was previously accused of sexually assaulting four men in the U.K. between 2004 and 2012. However, he was acquitted in London after a four-week trial.
"I imagine that many of you can understand that there's a lot for me to process after what has just happened today," Spacey said following the trial, according to the Daily Mail. "But I would like to say that I'm enormously grateful to the jury for having taken the time to examine all of the evidence and all of the facts carefully before they reached their decision."
Spacey was also found not liable for sexual abuse in New York in 2022.
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Kevin Spacey leaves after giving evidence at his sexual assault trial at Southwark Crown Court on July 13, 2023 in London, England. ((Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images))
The actor was famously pushed out of Hollywood and was dropped as the lead actor from Netflix's political drama "House of Cards" in 2017 after facing allegations of misconduct.
Spacey recently returned to the screen with roles in Italian director Franco Nero's "The Man Who Drew God," the biopic "Once Upon a Time in Croatia" and the film "Peter Five Eight."
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Fox News' Lauryn Overhultz and Greg Norman contributed to this report.
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