LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Danny Masterson, the former star of 'That '70s Show' has agreed to give his estranged wife Bijou Phillips full custody of their daughter Fianna Francis, 9, following his 30-year prison sentence for rape, reports said.
Masterson, 47, is asking for visitation rights, which have to be granted by prison officials, per legal documents obtained by TMZ.
Phillips, 43, filed for divorce from Masterson on September 15, not long after he was sentenced to prison
Bijou Phillips sided with Danny Masterson but snapped soon after his conviction
Phillips, a model and actress, had stood by Masterson’s side throughout his rape trial until after his sentencing on September 7.
“Ms Phillips has decided to file for divorce from her husband during this unfortunate time. Her priority remains with her daughter,” read a statement from Phillips’ lawyer, Peter A Lauzon, on September 19.
It also added, “This period has been unimaginably hard on the marriage and the family. Mr Masterson was always present for Ms Phillips during her most difficult times of her life."
Lauzon's statement further declared, "Ms Phillips acknowledges that Mr Masterson is a wonderful father to their daughter.”
Phillips demanded full legal custody of their daughter as part of the divorce
As part of the divorce, Phillips requested full legal and physical custody of Fianna.
She also reportedly requested Masterson to pay her attorney fees and requested that their assets be split.
Furthermore, Phillips asked that her legal last name be restored to Phillips in the documents.
Danny Masterson, the 'Dracula 2000' star, was convicted of two counts of rape.
Phillips and Masterson were married for 11 years. They had married in October 2011.
Internet reacted to Danny Masterson's decision
The internet reacted to the news of Masterson’s decision to give Phillips full custody with mostly sarcastic and cynical comments.
“I mean yeah…… since he’s in jail…,” wrote one user in the comment section of an Instagram post announcing the news. “Obviously,” wrote another. “Well he’s in jail , so full custody should not be an issue,” one more commented.
“Damn, that’s sad. Every child should have both parents. I’m not saying just one can’t be enough, but still… I believe both bring something necessary and special to the table. Hopefully, whatever is going on with him, he can get help with and start a new,” one fan wrote.
“We’ll obviously is he going to care for them in prison,” one more user sarcastically said.
“He’s in jail for the next 40 years. So yeah,” wrote one more. One wrote, “Yeah probably a bad idea, also do you know what happens to convicted rapists in jail?.”
As news of the custody surfaced on X, formerly Twitter, one user wrote, “That’s nice of him.” A second user wrote, “Lol. How can you share custody when in prison?.”
“30 years in prison so yea makes sense,” wrote a third X user. “Lols. What was the other option?” asked another.
One wrote, “Probably be better off without either of them. Her Mom did support a rapist until the very last minute.”
