Kevin Spacey must pay "House of Cards" makers $31 million

A judge ruled Thursday that actor Kevin Spacey must pay about $31 million to the makers of "House of Cards" because of the losses suffered due to Spacey's firing from the show in 2017, the Associated Press reports.

The big picture: Spacey was fired from "House of Cards" after facing allegations of sexual harassment and assault, AP reports. As a result, "House of Cards" makers said they reworked the final season of the show and lost five episodes, resulting in financial losses.

Catch up quick: Eight "House of Cards" employees accused Spacey of sexual harassment and assault, Axios previously reported. This followed previous allegations against Spacey from actor Anthony Rapp.

• One former production assistant alleged Spacey sexually assaulted him during one of the show's earlier seasons. Other accusers said Spacey's behavior included inappropriate comments and nonconsensual touching, CNN reported.
• Spacey has denied all allegations.

What they're saying: Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mel Red Recana ruled Thursday that Spacey must pay production company MRC because he and his attorneys failed "to demonstrate that this is even a close case," she said, per AP.

• Recana's ruling upheld a decision from November after a private arbitrator found Spacey violated his contract's demand for professional behavior. MRC then sued Spacey for violating his contract, Bloomberg reports.
• The arbitrator said Spacey had engaged in "certain conduct in connection with several crew members in each of the five seasons that he starred in and executive produced House of Cards,” according to a filing from MRC attorney Michael Kump, AP reports.

Last month, Spacey pleaded not guilty to five sexual assault charges in the U.K., the Washington Post reports.

Go deeper ... The men in media, entertainment and government accused of sexual harassment