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On Thursday, Sept. 7, Long Island-born actor Danny Masterson, age 47 was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison after he was convicted of two counts of rape, according to a report by ABC News.
Masterson, who grew up in Alberston, was given 15 years for each of the two women he was found guilty of raping during a retrial that occurred in May 2023.
The “That ‘70s Show” star had previously been accused of rape by three women, one of which included a former girlfriend, who were all part of the Church of Scientology, as is Masterson.
His original trial took place in November 2022 but ended in a jury deadlock. It was declared a mistrial.
According to ABC News, the third count of rape was dismissed in his most recent trial after prosecutors declared they would not retry Masterson on the charge.
The attacks took place between 2001 and 2003. All three women had said they were hesitant to report Masterson at first because church teachings advised against reporting to the police.
The victims all eventually left the church.
Though he was only found guilty of raping Jane Does 1 and 2, as the third had her count dismissed, ABC News reported that Judge Charlaine Olmedo allowed all three women to give victim impact statements at Masterson’s sentencing.
Masterson got his start in the acting world at four years old as a child model and in commercials.
His big break came when he was cast as Steven Hyde in “That ‘70s Show” alongside stars like Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher. He acted in the sitcom for all eight seasons.
Though he starred alongside Kutcher again from 2016-2018 in the show “The Ranch,” he was written out of the series as the rape allegations began to surface.
Similarly, Masterson was the only surviving and main cast member not invited back for “That ‘90s Show,” a sequel to the sitcom that gave him his big break, due to the allegations and his trial.
Masterson has been married to his wife Bijou Phillips since 2011, and the pair shares a nine-year-old daughter.
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