Ashton Kutcher has spoken about the rape allegations against his friend Danny Masterson for the first time.
Masterson, who starred in “That ’70s Show” and “The Ranch” with Kutcher, was charged in 2020 with raping three women. Facing 45 years to life in prison, Masterson pleaded not guilty in 2021. A judge declared a mistrial in November, and a new trial has been set for March.
In an interview with Esquire published Tuesday, Kutcher said he wants Masterson “to be found innocent of the charges brought against him.” Kutcher specified he doesn’t want his friend to get away with a crime — but to be truthfully revealed as innocent.
“Ultimately, I can’t know,” said Kutcher about what the verdict in Masterson’s upcoming trial should be. “I’m not the judge. I’m not the jury. I’m not the DA. I’m not the victim. And I’m not the accused. And so, in that case, I don’t have a space to comment. I just don’t know.”
Kutcher and Masterson share decades of history and have notably remained friends since the allegations.
Kutcher told Esquire that Masterson has served as a mentor ever since “That ’70s Show” became a hit when it debuted in 1998. Kutcher recalled Masterson adamantly telling the young cast that such success doesn’t come around often — and not to do “anything stupid and fuck this up.”
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The two friends starred in Netflix’s “The Ranch” together until Masterson’s rape allegations were made public in 2017. While Netflix wrote Masterson’s character off the show and fired him, Kutcher remained in touch — and has continued to do so to this day.
“Someday, his kid is going to read about this,” Kutcher told Esquire. “I wholesale feel for anybody who feels like they were violated in any way.”
Masterson was charged with rape by force or fear and could spend the rest of his life behind bars if found guilty on all three counts. The incidents in question occurred between 2001 and 2003 with former members of the Church of Scientology, which Masterson remains a part of. Masterson has denied the charges; his attorney has said the actor had consensual sex with the women.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge declared a mistrial in the case in November after jurors were unable to reach a united decision on any of the charges after seven rounds of voting.
A new trial for Masterson has been set for March 27.
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.