Netflix premiered 10 new episodes of “The Ranch” on Friday, and one of the women who accused the show’s star, Danny Masterson, of rape has now spoken out to criticize the move.
“We get it, Netflix,” Chrissie Carnell Bixler said in a statement to The Daily Beast. “You don’t believe us. You rub salt in our wounds. Is Danny Masterson still co-executive producer of The Ranch? You knew you had to fire him, but you do a bunch of reshoots so you can finish our rapist’s storyline up and give him a respectable send off. And there he is on TV in the new season.”
Netflix fired Masterson back in December after at least five women publicly accused the actor of rape or sexual assault, allegations which Masterson has denied. At the time, the streamer said Masterson’s character would be written off the show but would appear in future episodes to wrap up his storylines.
The first half of the show’s third season dropped on Friday, with Masterson prominently featured in all 10 episodes, only making his departure in the very last seconds of the final installment.
Bixler, who accused Masterson of raping her in the early 2000s and was one of four cases under investigation by Los Angeles police, questioned Netflix’s motives for preserving Masterson’s presence in the new episodes. She went on to note that Kevin Spacey, who was accused of sexually assaulting underage boys, was promptly erased from the streamer’s flagship drama “House of Cards.”
“Kevin Spacey? Fired on the spot. Production halted,” Bixler’s statement continued. “Ed Westwick? Louis C.K.? Are there active investigations into these accused men? Do you just not believe us? Do you agree with Jenni Weinman and the Church of Scientology when they say you cannot rape your wife or girlfriend? Are you afraid of Scientology’s Fair Game?”
Masterson is a lifelong Scientologist, and Bixler has said that the organization has previously employed its “Fair Game” policy allowing retaliation against its enemies in attempts to silence and intimidate her.