- Danny Masterson was convicted of rape, and he was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison Thursday.
- People are unhappy after Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher wrote letters asking for sentencing leniency for Masterson.
- Kunis and Kutcher released an apology after pressure from the public.
People across social media were upset when they found out Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher wrote letters asking for lighter sentencing for convicted rapist Danny Masterson — and they’re even less impressed with the couple’s stiff apology.
In a video posted to Instagram Saturday, Kunis and Kutcher addressed the backlash to their letters, and said they recognized their actions had caused harm.
Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologize for writing support letters for Danny Masterson in rape trial amid backlash:
“They were intended for the judge to read and not to undermine the testimony of the victims or re-traumatize them in any way. We would never want to do that. And… pic.twitter.com/DBeY7NXNEf
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) September 9, 2023
“They were intended for the judge to read and not to undermine the testimony of the victims or retraumatize them in any way,” said Kutcher in the video. “We would never want to do that, and we’re sorry if that has taken place.”
“Our heart goes out to every single person who’s ever been a victim of sexual assault, sexual abuse, or rape,” Kunis added.
In May, Masterson was convicted of two counts of rape in his retrial and was sentenced by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo to 30 years to life in prison last week.
Ahead of sentencing, almost 50 people sent letters in support of Masterson’s character, asking Olmedo for leniency in sentencing. Kutcher and Kunis, who starred with Masterson on “That ’70s Show,” each wrote a separate letter.
In their letters, which are public documents, both Kunis and Kutcher testified to Masterson’s “exceptional character” and said he was a role model. Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith, who played Kitty and Red Foreman on “That ’70s Show,” also submitted letters of support.
Chrissie Carnell Bixler, an ex-girlfriend of Masterson and one of his accusers, was less than pleased with the fact that they wrote letters of support. In an Instagram story, she called out Kutcher and said she hoped Kunis got therapy for her experiences on the set of “That ’70s Show,” reported Page Six.
Others, critical of the letters of support, called attention to the fact that Kutcher co-founded Thorn, an organization that works to stop child sex trafficking and abuse but was willing to defend Masterson.
Their subsequent apology was not well received on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“ashton kutcher and mila kunis admit that they were trying to protect a rapist from getting a harsh sentencing. Honestly we don’t want you to do any more work,” said one commenter on X. “Anything they do going forward is just apart of an agenda.”
“ashton and mila should fire their pr person because that video was rough,” said another.
Still another post from media figure Yashar Ali said the apology included “heavily lawyered language.”
Representatives for Kutcher and Kunis did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment, sent outside regular business hours.
