Bijou Phillips Submits Divorce Petition from Danny Masterson Following His Rape Sentencing

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Days after Danny Masterson, formerly known for his role on “That ’70s Show,” was handed a prison sentence of 30 years to life for two counts of rape, Bijou Phillips has initiated legal proceedings to dissolve her nearly 12-year marriage to him. Phillips, aged 43 and an actor by profession, filed the legal paperwork in Santa Barbara Superior Court on Monday, according to information on the court’s website. The couple shares a 9-year-old daughter. Additional details regarding the divorce are not available at this time.

Counsel for Phillips did not respond to email inquiries, and Masterson’s spokesperson chose not to comment on the matter. Despite his conviction, Masterson insists on his innocence. His legal team has announced intentions to appeal the sentence, raising concerns about evidential and constitutional issues tied to the conviction.

During both of Masterson’s trials, the first of which concluded in a mistrial and the second culminating in a conviction for two out of three alleged rapes dating back to 2003, Phillips was present in court alongside other family members of Masterson. She displayed visible emotion on May 31, when the guilty verdicts were pronounced, as well as during his sentencing hearing on September 7. At that hearing, the presiding judge sentenced Masterson to a term that mandates he serve at least 25 and a half years before becoming eligible for parole.

Prior to the sentencing, Phillips had written a letter to the judge extolling Masterson’s virtues as a spouse and father. She credited him for being a “life-saving partner,” seemingly referring to his support following her kidney transplant in 2017. The letter, which underwent heavy redaction before being made public, also revealed that the couple had purchased a farm which Masterson transformed into a vineyard in rural Santa Barbara County, following the termination of his acting engagements due to the ongoing police investigation.

Phillips described Masterson as an “exceptional father” and expressed her sorrow that he could not be home with her and their daughter. Born to John Phillips, the musician and songwriter for “The Mamas and the Papas,” and actor Genevieve Waite, Phillips transitioned from modeling in her teenage years to a career in acting. Her body of work includes roles in the film “Almost Famous” and television series such as “Raising Hope” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”

The couple began their relationship in 2004, announced their engagement in 2009, and subsequently married in Ireland in 2011. Masterson, who co-starred with Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis, and Topher Grace in “That ’70s Show,” which aired from 1998 to 2006, became the subject of a Los Angeles police investigation for sexual assault in 2017. He was arrested in 2020. Kutcher and Kunis faced public backlash when letters they had written to the judge in Masterson’s support became public.

Masterson was found guilty of sexually assaulting two women who were acquaintances through the Church of Scientology in 2003. Both victims testified that Masterson had drugged their beverages and subsequently assaulted them. The jury, however, could not arrive at a unanimous decision regarding a third charge, which alleged that he raped an ex-girlfriend in 2001.

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