What Is Danny Masterson's Net Worth and Salary?
Danny Masterson is an American actor, DJ, and convicted criminal who has a net worth of $8 million. That is a combined net worth with his wife, actress Bijou Phillips. Danny Masterson is best known for playing the role of Hyde in the hit sitcom "That '70s Show." He appeared in all 200 of the show's episodes, which ran from 1998 and 2006. Outside of his work on "That '70s Show," Danny is also known for starring in the show "The Ranch." Masterson has also performed as a DJ under the name 'DJ Mom Jeans.'
In 2017, Masteron's reputation was irrevocably marred by multiple rape allegations from three women. In 2020, he was formally charged with three counts of rape. On May 31, 2023, Danny Masterson was found guilty on two of the three charges. He was found guilty of "forceable rape" of two unnamed women. He faced 30 years in prison, 15 years per guilty verdict. And that is the exact sentence he received on September 7, 2023.
Early Life
Daniel Peter Masterson was born on March 13, 1976, in Long Island, New York. Raised in Garden City and East Williston, Masterson ventured into the entertainment industry at a very young age. By the age of four, he was an established child model who was featured in magazine articles and commercials. By the age of eight, he was acting in a number of musicals, although his singing voice deteriorated when he entered his teen years. At sixteen years of age, Danny had appeared in over 100 commercials for brands like Kellogg's, Clearasil, Tang, and many others.
Career
One of Masterson's first major film roles was in "Beethoven's 2nd." Also in the early '90s, he starred in the sitcom "Cybill." After two seasons in this show, he auditioned for "That '70s Show," despite being slightly older than the rest of the cast. Based on Danny's hilarious audition, production staff completely rewrote Hyde's character to fit Masterson's persona.
The role effectively launched his career, and Danny starred in all eight seasons of "That '70s Show." After the show wrapped, Masterson went on to appear in shows like "Punk'd" and "MADtv." He also starred in the 2008 film "Yes Man" alongside Jim Carrey. In 2009, he appeared alongside his wife, Bijou Phillips, in the film "The Bridge to Nowhere." After appearing in series like "White Collar" and the film "The Chicago 8," Danny booked a role in the comedy series "Men At Work" in 2012. From 2016 to 2018, he starred in "The Ranch."
Relationships
Masterson is a dedicated member of the Church of Scientology.
In 2005, he began dating Bijou Phillips, who is also a member of the Church of Scientology. After becoming engaged in 2009, Masterson and Phillips married in 2011. In 2014, they welcomed their first child into the world. Bijou's father, John Phillips, was the lead singer of the Mamas & the Papas.
Bijou's half-sister, Chynna Phillips, is married to Billy Baldwin. Her other half-sister, Mackenzie Phillips, would later claim that she started doing drugs with her father at the age of 11 AND that she had a sexual relationship with him for years, starting the night before her first marriage, eventually leading to a pregnancy that was aborted.
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Legal Issues
In 2017, four women came forward with sexual assault allegations against Masterson. All four women were Scientologists, and all four women claimed Masterson spiked their drinks and then raped them.
Police launched an investigation. Danny denied all the accusations made against him. Following this revelation, Masterson was dropped from "The Ranch" and his talent agency (United Talent Agency) severed all ties with him. More allegations were made, and in 2019 the four original women filed a lawsuit against Danny and the Church of Scientology for stalking and harassment.
These women claimed that they had been chased by Scientologists in cars, harassed, and filmed without permission. One of the four women was Chrissie Carnell Bixler, the wife of the well-known singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala. Cedric claimed that Masterson had raped his wife and that his pets were mysteriously being fed rat poison in rolled-up pieces of raw meat. His implication was that the rat poison meat was placed by members of the Church of Scientology. The details of these allegations are quite disturbing, and they include Danny allegedly drugging women and threatening them with guns.
In June 2020, Masterson was formally charged with raping three women. The first rape allegedly took place in 2001, while the other two allegedly occurred in 2003. These women ranged in age from 23 to 28. This came at the end of a three-year investigation that began in 2017. Danny faces a maximum prison sentence of 45 years if he is convicted. On May 31, 2023, Danny was convicted on two charges of forceable rape. On September 7, 2023, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison, 15 years per conviction.
Real Estate
In 2007, Danny was selling a home on Holly Mont Drive in Los Angeles for $1.595 million. The four-bedroom residence features a marble and gold leaf fireplace, pool, multi-terraced yard, hot tub, and a 2-car garage. He had originally purchased the home back in 1998 for $560,000, which was right after he landed his lucrative role on "That '70s Show." By this point, Masterson had already invested in several pieces of real estate property, including six apartments and small apartment buildings. In 2003, Danny bought an apartment in LA. He sold it less than a year later to Laura Prepon for $165,000.
For several years Masterson's home in Hollywood Hills and his ongoing legal case regarding his rape charges were tied together. By 2020, he was living in a house in Santa Ynez, in Santa Barbara County, while renting out his home in Hollyridge Drive. He purchased this 4,323-square-foot home (which was once owned by Chuck Berry) for $2.995 million in 2007.
After being arrested in June 2020 on charges of rape, Danny put up a $3.3 million bond to secure his release. He used the Hollyridge Drive home to secure the bond.
At one point, Masterson filed a number of lawsuits that alleged that the Bank of New York Mellon and the Mortgage Electronic Registrations Systems (MERS) filed faulty paperwork when he was financing his home. Danny argued that because of these actions, he no longer needed to make payments on the home. These motions were dismissed time and time again, and one attorney stated: "Plaintiffs appear to be merely throwing arguments up against the wall with the hope that they can formulate some basis for canceling their mortgage loan without full repayment."
It seems that these lawsuits (many of which Masterson filed personally) were an attempt to keep hold of his property in the face of legal action. In the end, Danny sold this home in December 2021 for $6.2 million after listing it for $7 million several months earlier.
