Ashton Kutcher And Mila Kunis Issued An Apology For Defending Danny Masterson, And It Did Not Go Well
ICYMI, Danny Masterson was just sentenced to 30 years in prison for raping two women at his Los Angeles home in the early 2000s.
Danny played fan favorite, Steven Hyde, in That 70s Show, and just about everyone — myself included — was completely floored by the allegations.
Once Danny was convicted of the rape charges, his family reached out to several people who knew him intimately, and asked them to write character letters to the judge, hoping for a lighter sentence.
Two people whom the family reached out to were Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis, his co-stars on That 70s Show.
Being that they knew him pretty well, they agreed to write character letters for Danny.
According to Distractify, Ashton’s letter “advocated that Danny had ‘nothing but a positive influence’ on his life and that he is a ‘person that is consistently there for you when you need him.'”
Mila’s letter talked about how Danny was full of goodness and had a genuine nature.
Ashton Kutcher And Mila Kunis Issue An Apology After Defending Danny Masterson
Unfortunately, these letters backfired with the public in a big way.
Mila and Ashton, pretty much one of the biggest power couples in Hollywood, might have just ruined their pristine reputation with fans, as the backlash surrounding these letters was pretty harsh.
In response to the criticism by fans, Ashton and Mila issued an apology video on Instagram.
In the video, which is less than 1 minute long, Ashton and Mila set out to defend exactly why they sent the character letters to the judge on Danny’s behalf.
The letters were not written to question the legitimacy of the legal system, or the validity of the jury’s ruling. We support victims. We have done this historically through work and will continue to do so in the future
Mila Kunis
But, some people aren’t buying the apology, and think the video was insincere and rehearsed.
The comments on the video were so bad that Ashton actually disabled commenting on the video.
Now, Mila and Ashton were not the only people to send in character letters for Danny.
Debra Jo Rupp and Kentwood Smith, who played Eric’s parents on That 70s Show, also sent in letters defending Danny’s character.
Danny’s four siblings, as well as actor William Baldwin also submitted character letters to the judge.
As far as we know, Mila and Ashton were the only ones to receive harsh criticism for their letters.
You can see Ashton and Mila’s apology video HERE.
Watch it, and see what you think. Sincere? Or just a rehearsed publicity stunt?
