In his new book, Wilmer Valderrama recalled a frightening experience that became a turning point in how he approached his life in Hollywood. “A group of actors and insiders is flying back to Hollywood from New Orleans after the Super Bowl, but nothing is smooth about this flight,” Valderrama, 44, wrote in An American Story: Everyone’s Invited , out Tuesday, September 17. “A winter storm rages across the skies, and the mood on board is shaky.
” Valderrama was “in a small chartered plane” with his That ’70s Show costars Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson , as well as Colin Hanks and a handful of other friends. “Outside is nothing but darkness and sleet,” he continued. “The plane is pitching up, down, side to side.
I’m feeling lightheaded. It’s getting hard to breathe. Oxygen masks drop from the ceiling, and I wonder if they dropped because the turbulence shook them loose or if it’s something else.
” After asking the pilot — who had already put on “a full Air Force mask, far bigger than ours” — Valderrama and his pals took action. “We fumble with our masks. Something is definitely not right with this plane,” the actor wrote.
“Colin clutches the armrests of his seat with a death grip. Ashton’s jaw has dropped to his lap. .
.. Our plane is going down.
” According to the captain, carbon monoxide was filling the interior of the plane because “an oxygen valve got stuck closed.” The effects were noticeable. Masterson, 48, told his costar.