The actor couple have faced criticism after writing letters to a judge in which they defended their friend Danny Masterson, who was convicted of rape.
Mila Kunis (right) and Ashton Kutcher pictured in Los Angeles on April 15, 2023. EPA / AOP
Actor couple Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have found themselves in the middle of a commotion after the couple wrote letters to a judge defending the man convicted of raping two women on Thursday Danny Masterson.
Kutcher, Kunis and Masterson starred in the 1990s and 2000s That 70’s Show in the series.
Kutcher and Kunis were among nearly 50 people who supported Masterson’s commuted sentence before he was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison. Masterson was convicted of raping two women in 2003.
Masterson has maintained his innocence and plans to appeal his conviction.
Criticism of letters
However, Kutcher and Kunis have faced criticism for defending Masterson in letters to the judge.
On Saturday, the couple released Kutcher Video on the Instagram channelwhere they open up about their reasons for writing letters.
If you don’t see the embed, you can watch it from here.
The couple say they are “conscious of the pain” they caused by writing letters on Masterson’s behalf before he was sentenced.
In the video, Kutcher said Masterson’s family asked the couple to write letters describing the Masterson they had known for 25 years.
The purpose of the letters, they said, was to help the judge take Masterson’s friends’ description of the man into account in sentencing.
– The letters were not written with the intention of questioning the legal system or the validity of the jury’s decision, Kunis said in the video.
In their letters, the couple said they only described Masterson’s character to the judge from their perspective.
– I don’t think that he is a constant harm to society, Kutcher had written.
Kunis, on the other hand, described Masterson as “an excellent role model and friend”.
The charges were read to actor Danny Masterson (center) at a Los Angeles courthouse in September 2020. On Thursday, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison for raping two women. EPA / AOP
“We support the victims”
On Saturday, Kutcher said in a video that the letters were not intended to “undermine the statements made by the victims or re-traumatize them in any way.”
– We would never want to do that. And we’re sorry if that happened, Kutcher said.
– We support the victims. We have historically done that through our work and will continue to do so in the future, Kunis added.
The couple is involved in several charities, including an organization founded by Kutcher that works against sex trafficking.
– Our hearts go out to every person who has ever been a victim of sexual assault, sexual abuse or rape, Kunis concluded the video message.
That 70’s Show stars Wilmer Valderrama (L), Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Danny Masterson pictured at the premiere of The Ranch in Los Angeles on March 28, 2016. Eric Charbonneau/Shutterstock/AOP