Castmates’ Defense of Danny Masterson Prompts New Scrutiny of ‘That ’70s Show’s Many Red Flags
Mila Kunis’ and Ashton Kutcher’s inexcusable defense of Danny Masterson has prompted new scrutiny of That ’70s Show‘s run, both on- and off-screen. Kunis and Ashton received criticism after it surfaced that they were among 50 people who had written letters supporting Masterson after he was convicted of rape, urging the judge to give him a lighter sentence. The pair starred alongside Masterson in the hit teen sitcom, which aired from 1998 – 2006 and achieved high success. They were not the only cast members to write letters for Masterson, but excerpts of their letters circulated on the internet and saw the pair praising Masterson as a “role model.”
Kunis and Kutcher offered an apology after facing backlash for the letters, but it fell very flat considering how much they hurt abuse victims. This situation with Kunis, Kutcher, and Masterson may feel like a curveball to some. Many of us grew up watching That ’70s Show, and now suddenly, almost two decades later, these actors are in the news for the most terrible reasons. However, if we take a closer look at That ’70s Show, we may find a lot of red flags we overlooked back when the show was first airing.
That ’70s Show was always problematic
While That ’70s Show was touted as a “teen” sitcom, in reality, as with most TV shows, most of the actors were in their 20s or very late teens—except for one. Kunis was just 14 when she was cast in the series, though she has since admitted that she lied about her age at her audition. Even though she lied that she was 18, the casting directors ultimately decided to give her the role even when they figured out she was 14. And when they learned she was a minor, they didn’t adjust her role. Instead, her character was still written in the show as having a romantic and sexual relationship with Kutcher’s character, despite her being 14 and Kutcher being almost 20.
This put Kunis in several situations that she simply shouldn’t have been in as a minor. In one recently resurfaced interview, Kunis described how the show had her “making out” with Kutcher for a scene when she was 14. It was her first kiss and she reiterated being “scared” about the scene, yet Masterson took the opportunity to bet Kutcher $20 to “French kiss” Kunis during it. Masterson’s and Kutcher’s behavior was disgusting, considering they were five to seven years her senior and trying to take advantage of a child in a vulnerable (and, remember, professional!) situation.
The production is also to blame, though, as the producers, writers, directors, and every other adult present never should’ve put a minor in a situation like that with adult cast members. However, as Kunis noted in another interview, her character was the only one to kiss nearly every guy in the cast. A barely-teenage girl in a predominantly adult male cast needed and deserved basic protection but instead was put in vulnerable situations. At the same time, the behavior of her cast members towards her seemingly wasn’t monitored too closely.
However, Kutcher and Masterson weren’t the only problematic cast members on That ’70s Show. A disgusting interview with Wilmer Valderrama and Howard Stern has also resurfaced. The interview is quite shocking, which is saying a lot, considering Stern’s radio career is riddled with misogyny. During the 2006 interview, Valderrama discusses his sexual history with his celebrity exes, whom he identified by name, delivering disgusting comments and lies about their intimate moments, breast size, and virginity while giving them “sex ratings.” He also joked with Stern about using “roofies” (date rape drugs) to get women’s attention and determined which of his exes he would “f**k, marry, or kill.” In addition to the interview, many are starting to remember that Valderrama dated Demi Lovato when she was 17 and he was 29.
Valderrama reportedly wasn’t one of the That ’70s Show cast members who wrote a letter for Masterson, but that’s just the very least he could do after his misogynist past. He still owes an apology to the numerous women he hurt.
Ashton Kutcher’s past misogyny resurfaces
As if Kutcher’s behavior towards Kunis on the set of That ’70s Show wasn’t bad enough, another clip has surfaced from 2003 in which Kutcher grossly declared that he was waiting for Hilary Duff and the Olsen twins to turn 18 so he could date them. In 2003, Kutcher would’ve been around 25 years old, while Duff was just 15. While this counting down for a girl to turn 18 is, unfortunately, still a fairly common refrain from grown men discussing young female celebrities, it’s finally starting to be recognized as disgusting and predatory.
It also seems that everyone has forgotten Kutcher’s sexist reality show Beauty and the Geek. Kutcher was the show’s executive producer, which paired “beauties” with “geeks.” The “beauties” were good-looking but supposedly lacked intellectual ability, while the “geeks” were intelligent people who lacked social skills. Of course, the beauties were almost always women, while the geeks were almost always men. It was touted as a “social experiment,” but it reinforced many stereotypes about gender roles, sexuality, and intelligence, especially since many contestants were clearly acting and purposely exaggerating their intellectual abilities to reinforce the stereotype.
Kutcher’s support of Masterson also raises further scrutiny of his anti-sex trafficking nonprofit, Thorn. After all, how can one claim to be doing such extensive work to end sex crimes while at the same time failing to show basic empathy and support to the victims in Masterson’s case? Unsurprisingly, his organization has also stirred controversy regarding its intentions. The organization has been accused of working with partners who equate consensual sex work with sex trafficking, thus seeking to abolish the former. Thorn has also directly contributed to this conflation of sex work and sex trafficking with the tools it uses, which collect sensitive information on consenting sex workers as part of its tracking of potential trafficking networks.
Considering his past sexist behavior and ongoing support of Masterson, Kutcher needs to do much more than tout his questionable Thorn organization or half-hearted apology video if he wants anyone to believe that he has changed and is truly an ally to women and victims of abuse.
(featured image: Fox)
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