Did Kevin Spacey cost Netflix nearly $40 million?
The streaming giant posted a banner fourth-quarter earnings report on Monday, but it included a $39 million write-down for content the company “decided not to move forward with”… and the “House of Cards” star immediately came to mind.
A source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to TheWrap the write-down was tied to cancelled Spacey projects. The story was first reported by Bloomberg.
The Golden Globe and Oscar winner was exiled from the Netflix political drama following accusations of sexual misconduct in November. The streaming media and video-on-demand service later decided to bring the show back for a final season, minus Spacey.
On a company call Monday afternoon, Chief Financial Officer David Wells said the loss was “related to the societal reset around sexual harassment.” Netflix executives didn’t specify who — or which projects — were tied to the write-down on the call.
Spacey was also set to star in a movie about writer Gore Vidal for the streaming service, but that has also been scrapped.
There were other possibilities that fit Wells’ explanation. Danny Masterson was written out of “The Ranch” following accusations of sexual assault, and a standup comedy special from Louis C.K. was axed in November after he admitted to sexual misconduct.
Wells said write-downs like this weren’t unfamiliar for the company, but that it “hadn’t had one of this magnitude.”