Ashton Kutcher Slammed for "Disgusting" Comments About Hilary Duff at 15

Kutcher and Kunis wrote letters on behalf of Masterson.

On Thursday, Sept. 7, Masterson was sentenced to 30 years in prison after being convicted in May of raping two women in 2003. Soon after, it was reported that Kutcher and Kunis had written character letters to the judge who was sentencing Masterson, along with their That '70s Show co-stars Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith, and others close to Masterson.

As reported by CBS News Los Angeles, Kutcher called Masterson a "role model," and wrote that he is "an extraordinarily honest and intentional human being." Kutcher added of his The Ranch co-star, "I do not believe he is an ongoing harm to society."

In her letter, Kunis wrote, "I wholeheartedly vouch for Danny Masterson's exceptional character and the tremendous positive influence he has had on me and the people around him."

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The couple explained why they wrote the letters.

There was swift backlash when the news of Kunis' and Kutcher's letters came out. The couple addressed the criticism in a video Kutcher posted on Instagram on Sept. 9.

"We are aware of the pain that has been caused by the character letters that we wrote on behalf of Danny Masterson," Kutcher said.

He explained that Masterson's family reached out to them about writing letters to "represent the person that we knew for 25 years so that the judge could take that into full consideration relative to the sentencing."

Kunis said that she and her husband "support victims," and that "the letters were not written to question the legitimacy of the judiciary system or the validity of the jury’s ruling."

The comments are turned off on the Instagram post, but people criticized the video elsewhere, with many calling it insincere and offensive. Others have noted that Kutcher co-founded an anti-sex trafficking organization, which they now see as hypocritical.

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A clip of Kutcher talking about Duff resurfaced.

The backlash has evolved into Kutcher being called out for problematic past comments. As reported by Entertainment Tonight Canada, one currently circulating video shows Kutcher talking about Duff on a 2003 episode of his prank show Punk'd. The two also appeared in Cheaper by the Dozen together.

At the time of the Punk'd episode, Duff was 15 years old and Kutcher was 25.

While introducing Duff in the clip, Kutcher says, "Hilary Duff is in Lizzie McGuire. She also has an album out. She’s going to be in a movie called Cheaper by the Dozen. And she’s one of the girls that we’re all waiting for to turn 18—along with the Olsen twins."

In response, users on X (formerly Twitter) have called Kutcher “disgusting” and a “slime ball,” and said that his comments were “nauseating”.

One X user wrote, “It is interesting to know that that video from Ashton talking like this about Hilary Duff was from 2003. Same year Danny commited [sic] these crimes. No wonder these guys were best friends all these years…"

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An interview with Kutcher and Kunis has also resurfaced.

As reported by Entertainment Weekly, also making the rounds online is a 2002 appearance that Kutcher and Kunis made on The Rosie O'Donnell Show. On the show, Kutcher and Kunis talked about how Kunis was only 14 years old when she was cast on That '70s Show, while Kutcher was 19. (At the time of the Rosie interview, the show was still airing and Kunis was 19.)

The co-stars told a story about how Masterson had made a bet with Kutcher to French kiss Kunis when they had to kiss in an early episode.

"I've never kissed a guy. Ashton's attractive, and I was a 14-year-old little girl, and I was extremely scared for my life," Kunis recalled in the interview. "He was very nice about it. He was like, 'Oh, don't worry' ... Then Danny goes to him and goes, 'Dude, I'll give you $10 if you French kiss her.'"

Kutcher admitted he and Masterson "had a little side bet going." He added, "Danny bets me, like, 20 bucks I wouldn't do it."

Kunis said, "I didn't let him, but I think he tried."

Kutcher said that he did do it, noting that Kunis had turned 15 by the time this took place. "That one year makes the whole world change," he said.

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There are other troubling clips, too.

BuzzFeed reported that other clips involving Kutcher and Kunis are circulating as well. One of them shows Kunis and Kutcher in a promotional video for That '70s Show, with Kutcher saying that he agreed to do the video because he was told Kunis would sit on his lap. He adds, "And it feels good!" while Kunis laughs.

In another clip, Kutcher introduces Kunis for an interview while noting, "I'm lucky enough to play her boyfriend, so I get to make out with her."

In light of these resurfaced clips—and others in which Kunis talks about her time on That '70s Show—some people are expressing sympathy for Kunis, since she was so young at the time. While Kutcher and Kunis have known each other for years, their romantic relationship began in 2012, and they got married in 2015.

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