Actor Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years in prison, up to life, for raping two women 20 years ago.

Masterson, best known for his role in the television comedy That 70s Show, was sentenced to prison after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F Olmedo heard from the women he assaulted, who detailed their trauma and suffering.

The 47-year-old American actor, who has been in detention since May, sat unresponsive in his suit as the two men spoke.

“When you raped me, you stole from me,” one woman said.

“That’s rape, a theft of the mind.”

“You are pathetic, deranged and completely violent. The world is better off with you in prison.”

The other woman, whom he also raped in 2003, said Masterson “has not shown an ounce of remorse for the pain he caused.”

She told the judge: “I knew he belonged behind bars for the safety of all the women he came into contact with. I am truly sorry and I am so upset. I wish I had reported him more to the police early.”

A mistrial was declared in December 2022 after a jury failed to reach a verdict on three counts of rape, and he was retried on all counts.

He was found guilty by a majority decision of two counts on May 31, after seven days of deliberations, but the jury was unable to reach a verdict on the third count, which allegedly involves another woman.

Masterson was convicted after a defense motion for a new trial was denied, with his lawyers trying to have the two sentences stacked with 15 years in prison.

“It’s his life that will be impacted by what you decide today,” Masterson’s attorney, Shawn Holley, told the judge.

“And the life of his nine-year-old daughter, who means everything to him and to whom he means everything.

“He lived an exemplary life, he was an extraordinary father, husband, brother, son, colleague and servant.”

Prosecutors defended his position in the controversial case Church of Scientologyof which the two women and an alleged victim were also members, was used to avoid consequences later, with the women blaming the organization for their hesitation to go to the police.

In a statement, the Church said “testimony and descriptions of Scientology’s beliefs” during the trial were “uniformly false.”

“The Church has no policy prohibiting or discouraging members from reporting the criminal conduct of anyone – Scientologist or not – to law enforcement.”

Masterson did not testify and his lawyers did not call any witnesses, with the defense instead arguing that the acts were consensual.

The women, whose testimony led to his conviction, said that in 2003 Masterson gave them drinks that made them dizzy, before they passed out and he raped them.

This 70s show, which ran for eight series from 1998 to 2006, revolved around a group of teenage friends and was set in 1970s Wisconsin.