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U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said on Monday
that Spacey's fame "magnified" the public's legitimate interest
in knowing the identity of the plaintiff, known as "C.D."
The Manhattan judge also said it would also unfairly burden the
61-year-old Spacey by forcing him to defend against an unknown
accuser.
C.D. "makes serious charges and, as a result, has put his
credibility in issue," Kaplan wrote. "Fairness requires that he
be prepared to stand behind his charges publicly."
Kaplan gave the plaintiff 10 days to amend his complaint and
include his name.
Lawyers for C.D. and Spacey did not immediately respond on
Tuesday to requests for comment.
C.D. said he was 12 when he met Spacey in 1981 as a student in
his acting class in Westchester County, New York.
He said he began a sexual relationship with Spacey two years
later in New York City, and that it ended after he resisted
Spacey's attempts to penetrate him.
A co-plaintiff, actor Anthony Rapp, said he was 14 when Spacey
engaged in an unwanted sexual advance with him during a 1986
party at Spacey's home. He is also seeking damages.
In a court filing last November, Spacey denied C.D.'s and Rapp's
sexual misconduct accusations.
He had said in 2017 he did not recall the alleged encounter with
Rapp, but that if he behaved as described he owed an apology
"for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken
behavior."
Spacey's awards for acting include Oscars for "American Beauty"
and "The Usual Suspects," a Golden Globe for Netflix's "House of
Cards" and a Tony for Neil Simon's "Lost in Yonkers."
Netflix severed its ties with Spacey after sexual misconduct
accusations surfaced in 2017.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by David
Gregorio)
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