In 2007, Hollywood actor, Kevin Spacey, took part in the pantomime, Cinderella, performed on the famous London stage.
Danny De Lillo, who dreamed of an acting career at the time and took a job at The Old Vic as a janitor, says years later that Spacey molested him.
He says he was sitting in a small alcove at the back of the theatre when, halfway through the performance, the star squeezed in next to him. At that moment, De Lillo claims, the star “was getting closer and suddenly he was between me and the wall.”
“I still remember the smell. His crotch was rubbing against me. And I just remember that I couldn’t move,” he says in an interview with The Telegraph. “People came into the auditorium and talked to him about how much they loved him. And I said, ‘What’s going on now?'” he recalls.
De Lillo cannot say how long the incident lasted, but he notes that he was traumatised. “This event took away so much of who I was, what I believed in, how I perceived celebrities. I wondered if this was an industry I wanted to be a part of,” adds the 39-year-old.
Today, he is among a group of 10 men who have publicly accused Spacey of inappropriate behaviour and are featured in a two-part documentary series, Spacey Unmasked, which will air on Channel 4.
The actor did not directly comment on De Lillo’s words. On Thursday, he said via X that he had “repeatedly asked Channel 4 for more than seven days to respond to the allegations against him dating back 48 years and to provide it with sufficient details to investigate these matters.”
He also stated that he “will not sit back” and allow himself to be attacked “with a one-sided ‘documentary’ about him in a desperate attempt to gain viewership.”
De Lillo did not report Spacey’s behavior to Old Vic authorities at the time or to the police because he feared no one would believe him. He didn’t quit his job because he had to pay rent for his apartment.
“I just did everything I could to avoid him. I think many people do the same in situations like this. But I didn’t tell anyone,” said a former employee of the theatre where the star was artistic director until 2015.