“We’re conscious of the ache that has been brought on by the character letters that we wrote on behalf of Danny Masterson,” Kutcher stated within the video.
The assist letters “had been meant for the choose to learn and to not undermine the testimony of the victims or re-traumatize them in any means,” Kutcher stated. “We’d by no means wish to do this and we’re sorry if that has taken place.”
Kunis added, “Our coronary heart goes out to each single one who’s ever been a sufferer of sexual assault, sexual abuse, or rape.”
Of their character letters, Kunis and Kutcher described Masterson as an honest human and “function mannequin” for others. Kunis wrote that Masterson was “an excellent function mannequin and good friend” and an “distinctive older brother determine.” Kutcher defined in his letter that Masterson all the time confirmed “decency, equality, and generosity.”
The letters had been reportedly written in July and August — shortly after Masterson was discovered responsible of two counts of rape throughout a trial that concerned three ladies again in Might, based on the Related Press. Masterson has lengthy denied the allegations towards him, pleading not responsible throughout two trials over the allegations. His protection argued that he had consensual intercourse with the ladies.
Kutcher stated Masterson’s household requested the couple to put in writing the letters after the actor was convicted. He stated they had been meant to explain “the individual that we knew for 25 years” so the choose might take that into consideration for Masterson’s sentencing.
Criticism for the apology video and the assist letters circulated on-line all through the weekend. Chrissie Carnell Bixler, certainly one of Masterson’s victims, condemned the couple in an Instagram story post.
“In my view, you’re simply as sick as your ‘mentor,’” she wrote of Kutcher. She added that Kunis ought to begin processing her expertise on the “That ’70s Present” and search remedy.
Others on social media alleged that Kutcher had proven questionable conduct up to now, particularly pointing to a 2003 video of the actor talking on his MTV present “Punk’d” about actress Hilary Duff. Within the video, Kutcher says Duff, who was a minor on the time, is “one of many ladies that we’re all ready for to show 18. Together with the Olsen twins.”
Representatives for Kutcher and Kunis didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Kutcher and Kunis are the most recent celebrities to see backlash on social media for writing character letters. Again in August, social media was fast to criticize rapper Iggy Azalea for writing a assist letter for Tory Lanez, who was sentenced to 10 years within the taking pictures of rapper Megan Thee Stallion. Azalea reportedly requested the choose for a “transformational, not life destroying” sentencing in her letter.
Azalea apologized amid the backlash, saying she didn’t know her letter would develop into public.
“I used to be informed this was for a choose solely, but it’s being mentioned in public?” she stated in a post on X, previously often called Twitter. “I by no means meant to publicly remark.”
