Former clients represented by the legal team That ‘70s Show star Danny Masterson has recently made attempts to squash his impending trial over accusations of rape and more, from falling back on previously failed tactics to using billionaire Rick Caruso’As a reason to delay proceedings, the ads were anti-Scientology. Such pleas were rejected by Judge Charlaine Olmedo, however, who confirmed the actor’s trial would go forward as planned, while making other rulings on the case. However, it seems that there are plans for the prosecution’s call-up of Lisa Marie Presley (a Scientologist) as a witness.
Danny Masterson’s trial is set to begin on Tuesday, October 11, barring any successful last-minute attempts to stall things. He’s facing three charges of forcible rape involving three women, with the alleged crimes taking place from 2001-2003, which could land him in prison for upwards of 45 years if he’s found guilty of all three. And it appears there’s a chance the case could be tipped in one direction or another by Lisa Marie Presley, who’d earlier this year publicly supported the release of Austin Butler as her father in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis.
According to Tony Ortega’s Underground Bunker, while Judge Olmedo reportedly denied the prosecution’s request to bring in another female accuser as an expert witness, it’s expected that Presley will be called in as a witness at some point in the trial. Details about her potential connections aren’t known, for obvious reasons, but her involvement would likely confirm suspicions that she was the “Lisa” being referenced during Masterson’s preliminary hearing in 2021.
Jane Doe 1, victim, made several references to a friend at the hearing. “Lisa,” who was connected to a friend of Masterson’s named Luke Watson, an actor that Presley was romantically tied to in the late 1990s. Both of them were heavily involved with the Church of Scientology at the time, with Presley remaining a follower until 2016, when she abruptly exited tied to her attempts to call leader David Miscavige out for the treatment of his father Ron, who’d burned many bridges upon leaving the Church in 2012.
Jane Doe 1 said that Danny Masterson abused her sexually in 2003. He demanded she not speak out.
You’re not going to tell fucking Lisa. You’re not going to fucking tell anybody.
Although it was suspected that Lisa Marie Presley was being mentioned, she wasn’t directly tied to the trial. Her appearance in court could have significant reverberations, depending on the subject she’d be testingify about.
Masterson’s last regular TV role before everything went widely public was alongside his former That ‘70s Show co-star Ashton Kutcher for The Ranch, which is still available to stream with a Netflix subscription. The actor will not be involved with the streaming service’s upcoming sequel series That ‘90s Show, which wrapped filming in July after bringing back other co-stars such as Topher Grace, Laura Prepon, Mila Kunis and more. Albeit only for super-limited returns.
With the trial kicking off on October 11 with jury selection, more details will likely be coming soon, though it’It is not clear how long the legal drama will continue before a verdict can be reached.