Danny Masterson’s mother, Carol Masterson, and half-brother Jordan Masterson visited him in prison on the same day that Bijou Phillips filed for divorce from the disgraced actor, 47.
Carol and Jordan arrived at Los Angeles’ Twin Towers prison on Monday, September 18, according to photos published by Daily Mail. That day, Bijou, 43, requested spousal support from Danny in addition to full legal and physical custody of their daughter, Fianna Francis. In her divorce filing, the Raising Hope alum cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason behind her and Danny’s split. She listed their date of separation as “TBD” in the documents.
“Ms. Phillips has decided to file for divorce from her husband during this unfortunate time. Her priority remains with her daughter,” Bijou’s attorney, Peter Lauzon, said in a statement to several outlets that day. “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. Ms. Phillips acknowledges that Mr. Masterson is a wonderful father to their daughter.”
Bijou’s decision to divorce the former That ‘70s Show star came as a surprise. Throughout Danny’s trial, she and his family members showed their unwavering support for him. In addition to Jordan, Danny’s half-siblings Alanna and Will Masterson and his biological brother, Christopher Masterson, stood by him in court.
Bijou was seen crying in the courtroom after her now-estranged husband was convicted in May on two counts of rape. He was recently sentenced on September 7 to 30 years to life in prison.
The only family member who has kept their distance from Danny is his former stepdad, Joe Reaiche. While speaking with Us Weekly, the 65-year-old claimed his former stepson “changed after he had the hit show [That ‘70s Show] in 1998.”
“I feel for the kid, because he’s married. He’s got a kid,” Joe told the publication in his interview. “OK, people have made mistakes, but he is going to be out of [prison] when he’s 72, maybe never. I feel for [Danny’s biological father] Peter, because that’s his son. Pete’s 75 years old. If this goes the way it is, he’s going to die before his son gets out, his mother’s going to die before he gets out. The consequences are just catastrophic.”
In a separate interview, Joe claimed that his children, Jordan and Alanna — whom he shares with ex-wife Carol — “perjured themselves” in the letters they wrote to the judge on Danny’s behalf.
“It’s bulls–t,” Joe claimed to The Daily Beast on September 10. “They make it sound like I walked out and abandoned them and that Danny was the hero. … I paid for their summer school at that expensive Scientology school in Oregon, Delphi. That was $5,000 each. And I took them everywhere. I slept on couches so the kids would be fine.”