LOS ANGELES — Charlie Sheen, Warner Bros. Television
and “Two and a Half Men” co-creator Chuck Lorre have officially made
peace and settled their legal differences.
Sheen
has been at odds with the studio and Lorre since early this year after
Warner Bros. shut down production of the CBS sitcom to force Sheen to
seek treatment for substance abuse issues. Warner Bros. later fired the
actor after he publicly criticized the studio and Lorre.
Although
none of the parties would comment on the deal, last week the Los
Angeles Times reported that Sheen would receive $25 million to settle
the matter. The amount was from profits Sheen was due to receive for
work he had done on the show, a person familiar with the matter said.
The
public fight involving Sheen, Warner Bros. and Lorre was one of the
ugliest in recent memory. Sheen went on television and radio shows and
even launched a national tour, all with the goal of criticizing his old
bosses and declaring himself a winner.
A more
contrite Sheen has appeared in recent weeks. He made an appearance on
NBC’s “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” where he joked that he would
have fired himself too. He also was a presenter on Fox’s Emmy Awards
telecast Sept. 18 and wished “Two and a Half Men” good luck without him.
For
Sheen, putting the matter behind him and showing that he has settled
down is key for his future in Hollywood. He is working on a new
situation comedy based on the Adam Sandler movie “Anger Management” for
production company Debmar-Mercury, owned by Lions Gate Entertainment
Corp. It has not been sold to a network yet.
Last week, “Two and a Half Men” made its debut with Ashton Kutcher as its new leading man and drew almost 30 million viewers.
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©2011 the Los Angeles Times
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