He is found guilty of raping two women by the American justice system. American actor Danny Masterson, a prominent member of the Church of Scientology known for his role in the “That ’70s Show” series, was tried by a Los Angeles jury. The 47-year-old actor was imprisoned after the hearing, pending his sentence to be determined by a judge on August 4. He faces up to 30 years in prison.
Three women, also Scientologists, accused him of raping them at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003. Jurors ruled in favor of two of them and failed to reach the unanimity needed to reach a verdict regarding the third.
During the trial, prosecutors found that the actor had “drugged and raped each of these victims” and called for “holding him accountable”. This case, triggered in 2017 in the wake of accusations against ex-producer Harvey Weinstein which caused the explosion of the #MeToo movement, also raised questions about the role of the Church of Scientology.
Fired from a shoot in 2017 after accusations of sexual assault
Two of the complainants notably assured that the organization, very well established in Los Angeles, had dissuaded them from contacting the police. Danny Masterson’s defense insisted that the plaintiffs’ story has evolved over the years, and suggested that bias against Scientology may have motivated the lawsuit.
At a previous trial in November, a different jury had refused to rule, unable to reach unanimity. Danny Masterson made a name for himself in the late 1990s for his role in the series “That ’70s Show” alongside Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher.
He also most recently appeared alongside the latter in the Netflix series “The Ranch”, but was let go in 2017 after Los Angeles police confirmed they were investigating sexual assault charges against him.