In an interview with Buzzfeed on Sunday, Star Trek: Discovery star Anthony Rapp claimed that Spacey had sexually assaulted him at a party in 1986 when he was 14.

Spacey later apologised to Rapp in a statement released hours after the interview was published in which he said he was “beyond horrified” by Rapp’s story, saying he did not recall the incident.

Netflix and producer Media Rights Capital has released a statement on Spacey, saying, “Media Rights Capital and Netflix are deeply troubled by last night’s news concerning Kevin Spacey.

“In response to last night’s revelations, executives from both of our companies arrived in Baltimore this afternoon to meet with our cast and crew to ensure that they continue to feel safe and supported. As previously scheduled, Kevin Spacey is not working on set at this time.”

Although the decision to end House of Cards was announced on Monday, the decision to pull the plug on the series is understood to have been made several months ago.

Spacey is the latest Hollywood man to be named in widening allegations of sexual harassment and abuse in entertainment, media and other industries. The avalanche of allegations began earlier this month after the New York Times published a story alleging that producer Harvey Weinstein had sexually harassed numerous women.

In the BuzzFeed News interview, Rapp alleged that he was at a party at Spacey’s apartment in 1986 when the inebriated actor, then aged 26, picked him up, placed him on his bed, and climbed on top of him. Rapp was able to get away without any physical harm.

Spacey responded on Twitter by saying he didn’t remember the alleged encounter but if he acted the way Rapp alleges, “I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behaviour.”

Spacey then said Rapp’s story “encouraged” him to address long-simmering rumors about his sexuality. He wrote that he’s had romantic relationships with both men and women in the past but is now living “as a gay man” and wanted to be honest so he could examine “my own behaviour”.

The two-paragraph statement – an apology in the first for a 31-year-old alleged assault and a self-outing in the second – struck many as an odd time for Spacey to address his sexuality.

Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of the gay rights group GLAAD, said in a statement that the story was really about unwanted sexual advances on Rapp, not Spacey’s sexuality. “Coming out stories should not be used to deflect from allegations of sexual assault,” she said.

-AP/Reuters