LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥 Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologized Saturday for character letters the celebrity couple wrote on behalf of fellow 鈥淭hat 鈥70s Show鈥 actor Danny Masterson before he was sentenced for rape this week.
for raping two women in 2003.
In a video posted on Instagram, Kutcher and Kunis said they were sorry for the pain they may have caused with the letters, which were made public Friday.
Kutcher said the letters that asked for leniency 鈥渨ere intended for the judge to read and not to undermine the testimony of the victims or retraumatize them in any way. We would never want to do that and we're sorry if that has taken place.鈥
Kutcher said Masterson鈥檚 family approached them after the actor was convicted in the rapes in May and asked them to write character letters describing 鈥渢he person that we knew for 25 years.鈥 The letters were posted online by The Hollywood Reporter and other digital publications.
Masterson starred with Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace in 鈥淭hat 鈥70s Show鈥 from 1998 until 2006.
He had reunited with Kutcher on the 2016 Netflix comedy 鈥淭he Ranch,鈥 but was written off the show when the Los Angeles Police Department investigation was revealed the following year.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo handed down the sentence to Masterson, 47, after hearing statements from the women, and pleas for fairness from defense attorneys.
Kutcher described Masterson as a man who treated people "with decency, equality, and generosity,鈥 he wrote in his letter dated July 27, 2023.
Kunis in her letter to Olmedo called Masterson 鈥渁n outstanding role model and friend鈥 and an 鈥渆xceptional older brother figure."
Both rapes took place in Masterson鈥檚 Hollywood-area home in 2003 when he was at the height of his fame on the Fox network sitcom 鈥淭hat 鈥70s Show.鈥 The victims testified that .
Kunis said in the apology video that their letters did not mean to undermine the testimony of victims.
鈥淥ur heart goes out to every single person who鈥檚 ever been a victim of sexual assault, sexual abuse, or rape,鈥 she said.
