Kevin Spacey denies assault charge in US court

New York: Disgraced movie star Kevin Spacey takes the stand at his New York trial, rejecting as "not true" accusations he assaulted fellow actor Anthony Rapp when he was a minor.

Rapp, who stars in the series "Star Trek: Discovery," is claiming damages of $40 million against the two-time Oscar-winner for "emotional anguish," for what allegedly happened in 1986, when he was 14 and Spacey was 26.

Spacey said he had no recollection of attending a private party in a Manhattan apartment with Rapp, as the now 50-year-old claims.

Before appearing in court Monday, Spacey, 63, won a small victory when the judge presiding over the case, Lewis Kaplan, dismissed Rapp´s claim that Spacey had intentionally caused him emotional distress.

Since Rapp´s accusations first emerged in 2017, at the height of the #MeToo movement against sexual abuse, Spacey has disappeared from screens and theaters.