Charlie Sheen settles over Two and a Half Men firing
The studio that fired former Two and a Half Men star Charlie Sheen said Monday it has struck a deal with the actor to end their legal dispute.
Warner Bros. Television released a statement saying that Sheen's lawsuit against the studio and series executive producer Chuck Lorre has been settled "to the parties' satisfaction." The statement said terms of the settlement are confidential.
Sheen had filed a $100 million US lawsuit for wrongful termination against Warner after his firing last March. His attorney, Marty Singer, had said much of that amount was the actor's share of DVD, syndication and other profits that the studio was withholding.
Singer said he could not discuss specifics of the settlement, but he said all parties were satisfied with the resolution.
The Los Angeles Times reported Sheen's settlement would be $25 million US, although celebrity website TMZ reported the deal would be worth roughly $100 million US over the next several years. Both outlets cited unnamed sources in reports about the settlement amounts.
Sheen was fired at a time when he was the highest-paid actor in television, with a per-episode salary reported to be between $1.2 million and $2 million US . His exit cut short the CBS comedy's season.
By then, Sheen had been on a media blitz for weeks, using catchphrases such as "Tiger Blood" and "winning" and describing himself as a warlock.
The case never became the forum for Sheen's grievances that the actor said he was seeking — most of the court proceedings centred on whether the dispute should be heard through private arbitration, as called for in the actor's contract. A judge determined that the case should be moved to arbitration in June and attorneys had been working through that process.
Sheen has distanced himself from his previous outlandish behaviour in recent weeks and has acknowledged he was at least partly responsible for his ouster from television's top-rated comedy.
"It was bad," Sheen told Jay Leno, "and I own my part in that, and I just want to make everything right."
Appearing last week at the Emmy Awards as a presenter, he addressed the Two and a Half Men cast and crew, saying, "I wish you nothing but the best for this upcoming season."
Men returned to the air last week with Ashton Kutcher joining the cast as a new character. He plays an Internet billionaire who decides to buy the house that had been owned by Sheen's now-deceased character.
A phone message for Lorre's attorney Howard Weitzman was not immediately returned.