Spacey’s backdown from the project follows the sexual assault case in London for which he pleaded not guilty on 14 July 2022.

It has not been announced who will take over his role in the cast that includes Eric Roberts and Christopher Lambert, with Michael Ironside as the narrator.

1242: Gateway to the West already received support from the National Film Institute - Hungary. The story written by Áron Horváth and Joan Lane is set during the great Mongolian invasions in Europe when Genghis Khan’s military commander Batu Khan is beat back by a Hungarian castle and a spiritual man, who was supposed to be played by Kevin Spacey.