By Mark Gray
11:42am PST, Nov 22, 2023
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Bijou Phillips is slowly returning to her old self now that her husband's fate is known.
In September, the "Almost Famous" star's husband, Danny Masterson, was sentenced to 30 years in prison on two rape convictions stemming from assaults that occurred in 2003 at his Los Angeles home.
Page Six reported that Bijou has been laying low in the two months since Danny was sentenced but that she recently seemed "upbeat" while hanging out with longtime pal Nicky Hilton Rothschild. "It's like, 'Danny who?' " a witness said.
Keep reading for more on Bijou's mental state since the "That '70s Show" star was put behind bars…
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Bijou Phillips posted a selfie to her Instagram Story on Nov. 21 and cryptically spoke about Thanksgiving being "unbearable."
She wrote, "The rain is falling in gusts and taps, the leaves are blown and hanging on in bright colors. The world is falling apart, but this has been so always. The cat acts like it wants to love but hints at attack. The holiday seems unremarkable but also unbearable. The storm outside howls like a child calling for its mother. It wakes me to find mine sound asleep. I with it work me to find peace."
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In the days following Danny Masterson's three-decade sentencing for two rape convictions, his wife, Bijou Phillips, tried to stay positive and was speaking to him "daily," DailyMail.com claimed.
But on Sept. 18, Bijou filed for divorce — less than two weeks after Danny was sentenced, despite sources' claims that she had no plans to end their 11-year marriage. TMZ reported that she listed their date of separation as "TBD" and asked for spousal support, attorneys fees and for her legal surname to be restored to Phillips. She's asked for legal and physical custody of their 9-year-old daughter, with visitation for Danny. (He would eventually agree and sign over full custody of their daughter.)
One day after the filing, Bijou's attorney shared this statement with TMZ: "Ms. Phillips has decided to file for divorce from her husband during this unfortunate time. Her priority remains with her daughter," attorney Peter A. Lauzon said.
"This period has been unimaginably hard on the marriage and the family," Bijou's lawyer continued, adding, "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."
Days later, a new report shed light on the real reason Bijou chose to end her marriage…
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On Sept. 22, DailyMail.com reported on what it learned are the two main reasons behind Bijou Phillips' divorce filing.
A source told the outlet that Bijou actually still loves Danny and hopes his sentence will be reduced or reversed. "[But] recently, friends and family have told her to be a mom first and to consider divorce because it really shows her daughter that eventually people need to be held accountable for what they do, even if it is someone they love," the source revealed.
The other reason? "Bijou also is doing it to protect her assets and protect her future," the source explained. "She doesn't want to lose money and land and housing over a future civil lawsuit against Danny. She is looking to protect her future and that is one big reason she has pursued divorce."
Despite her desire to end their marriage, "Bijou will never say anything negative about Danny's parenting skills," the source added. "He is incredible in that department."
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Just five days before Bijou Phillips's divorce filing, DailyMail.com reported that she and Fianna — the 9-year-old daughter she shares with Danny Masterson — were talking to the convicted rapist on the phone every day, and that Bijou — who was still "very much in love with him," a source said in the Sept. 13 report — believed in his innocence and was determined to "be there for her husband," the source added.
Additionally, Bijou was visiting Danny "whenever there is a chance," the source added.
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Danny Masterson and Bijou Phillips have been trying to be honest and transparent with their 9-year-old daughter, Fianna, in the wake of his convictions and sentencing, without focusing on his incarceration.
The stars "answer all their daughter's questions, but they aren't getting into the nitty gritty," a source told DailyMail.com on Sept. 13.
"It is extremely emotional and tough, and to harp on it is emotionally draining. The times that Danny talks to his daughter and Bijou, it is always about anything else than the obvious," the source said.
"He continues to try to reassure them that it will be OK. Many tears have been shed but they use the time to talk to each other about school and anything else. There will be a time and place to fill in her daughter fully, but that is still a work in progress."
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With Danny Masterson now serving a 30-year prison sentence, his wife has to provide for their daughter on her own. But according to a DailyMail.com source, Bijou Phillips is able to cope financially. "[She] should be fine for the foreseeable future," the source said on Sept. 13.
"When it comes to money, Danny wasn't making as much money as he was making in his heyday, but he is still left with a good amount of money from what was saved from his time with 'That '70s Show,'" the source explained.
"Bijou also is a good saver from the work she has done. They never showed financial distress as Danny did what he had to do for himself and his family to survive while acting jobs weren't as frequent over the years and also having to pay lawyers," the source added.
Right now, the source continued, financial matters are the "least" of Bijou's worries. "Bijou and her daughter should be fine for the foreseeable future regarding living arrangements and will not be destitute," the source said, adding that "Bijou has a lot of family and friends besides Danny's friends and family that would gladly help in the chance that Bijou falls on hard times."
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Just five days before Bijou Phillips filed for divorce, a source told DailyMail.com that the actress was "eager" to start the appeal process following husband Danny Masterson's sentencing on two rape convictions.
The actress was hopeful the "results of his sentence will be drastically changed or overturned," the source said on Sept. 13, adding that "she is still holding out lots of hope that it will change, and he will be free."
In a separate Sept. 13 report from People magazine, an insider shared that Bijou was "surrounded by family and friends" and "in touch with [Danny's] lawyer."
"They are planning appeals. She tries to stay hopeful," the source said.
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Following Danny Masterson's sentencing on Sept. 7, wife Bijou Phillips began to come to grips with a new reality for herself and their 9-year-old daughter, Fianna. According to a source who spoke to DailyMail.com the same day a judge ordered the actor to spend the next 30 years behind bars for two rape convictions, Bijou was approaching this new phase of her life as if there was a death in the family.
"Currently Bijou is circling the drain and is filled with all the emotion and no emotion at all," the source said. "She is a shell of who she has been. She is really trying to be strong for her daughter as she is trying to figure out life and what it will be like for her. It can only be compared to a divorce or a death for her not being able to be with Danny the way they were."
"They had their life, and it has been completely uprooted and changed and change is as scary and miserable as one would imagine. Friends are trying to be there for her, but things are really tough. She's really trying to figure it all out and what her life will be after all things are said and done," the source continued, adding that "whatever happens with Danny will change her life forever and, in a not so dignified word, it just sucks."
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A month after Danny Masterson's sentencing, his beloved church allegedly turned its back on him. DailyMail.com reported that the Church of Scientology — which played a role in his trial — cut ties with the "That '70s Show" actor and declared him a "suppressive person."
"They are telling Scientologists that he will file an appeal and that he is innocent of the charges for which he was convicted," ex-Scientologist Jeffrey Augustine said. "[Church officials] declared Danny a suppressive person for not maintaining the high ethical standards for the Church of Scientology, and other reasons — but not because he was convicted of rape."
Because of the alleged declaration, it reportedly prohibits Scientologists, including wife Bijou Phillips, from contacting him.
"A lot of Scientologists were complaining that they have friends and family members that they can't talk to because they were declared suppressive. They questioned why Danny Masterson was allowed to be a Scientologist in good standing when he's brought such a horrible public relations situation on to the church with his felony rape convictions," Jeffrey said. "So the members are asking why were their friends and family declared [SPs] for reading the internet, watching [former Scientologist] Leah Remini's show, and doing other things that are far below what Masterson was charged with?"
