Zara Phythian's dad has accused Victor Marke of "grooming" his daughter.
Zara Phythian was recently sentenced to prison
The 'Doctor Strange' actress was recently sentenced to eight years in prison while her martial arts instructor husband was sentenced to 14 years at Nottingham Crown Court - and Andy Phythian has now claimed that Marke had "a hold" over his daughter.
He told the Daily Mail newspaper: "We have all got along over the years, but now there are no words for how I feel about him. I have always thought he groomed Zara.
"He got into her mind and messed her head up to control her. For her, martial arts meant everything. He used that to get a hold over her.
"In my opinion he should have owned up to grooming Zara, pleaded guilty and let her walk. She is another of his teenage victims. I just feel awful about it."
The actress met the martial arts instructor when she was still a teenager, and Phythian admits their relationship was always a bit "strange".
He said: "I gave them our blessing and I have never seen Zara so happy. But we all thought it was a bit strange.
"I don’t wish to be rude but Vic is not the prettiest picture and Zara is a very pretty girl. My mates would say, 'What is she doing with him?' But she was happy and her career was going very well."
The pair were recently found guilty of sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl together, while Marke was also convicted for sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl on his own.
Judge Mark Watson said Marke, 59, was the "driving force behind the abuse".
Addressing Phythian, 37, the judge added: "Whilst you denied in cross-examination that you were besotted with Victor Marke, on the evidence I have heard I am in no doubt that your deviance was shaped by the influence that he had upon you from an early age."