Two and a Half Men’s Charlie Harper was killed offscreen, following the dismissal of the series lead, Charlie Sheen due to his alleged self-destructive conduct during season eight.
Two and a Half Men is the hit sitcom which first premiered in 2003. The initial premise of the show focused on “A hedonistic jingle writer’s free-wheeling life comes to an abrupt halt when his brother and 10-year-old nephew move into his beach-front house.”
In the lead role was actor Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper. Sheen would play the character for eight seasons, until he was tragically killed offscreen in a freak accident in Paris.
Harper’s death resulted in the abrupt end of the season, due Sheen’s behaviour behind-the-scenes and the relationship breakdown between him and show creator, Chuck Lorre.
The decision to write off Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen’s professional woes while working on Two and Half Men are believed to have started in 2010, after he allegedly physically assaulted his wife.
Thereafter, the matter of his substance and alcohol abuse and rockstar tendencies became headline stories. It is believed that the show initially halted production in order for Sheen to go to rehab.
However, even after his rehab stint, his erratic and bizarre behaviour allegedly continued. Moreover, he began to publicly berate show creator, Chuck Lorre, which was understood as the last draw, leading to the immediate termination of his contract.
How did Charlie die on Two and a Half Men?
Considering that the producers of Two and a Half Men fired Charlie Sheen with immediate effect in 2011, over what the producers of the show described as his “dangerously self-destructive conduct.”
Following his dismissal, the producers took the decision to end season eight abruptly, as they went back to the drawing board to figure out what to do.
This is as Two and a Half Men was still a numbers puller and there were no plans to cancel a successful show due to an erratic lead actor.
Therefore, when the show did eventually return for its ninth season, it returned with new lead character Walden Schmidt, who was played by Ashton Kutcher.
The show addressed Charlie Sheen’s exit through Charlie Harper’s offscreen death, as the new season began with his memorial service.
During the service we find out that he slipped on a Metro platform in Paris, leading him to fall in front of an on-coming train, where his body allegedly blew up like a balloon.
Charlie Sheen fights back after dismissal
Before he was fired with immediate effect from Two and a Half Men for his alleged self-destructive behaviour on the set, it was alleged that Sheen would arrive late for rehearsals and sometimes still be intoxicated.
Additionally, reports stated that he would also berate the show creator, Chuck Lorre in front of the rest of the cast and crew.
However, after Sheen received help with his substance abuse and alleged mental health issues, he went on to sue the show for wrongful dismissal.
Sheen rubbished allegations that he was unprofessional in the workplace, except to admit to berating Lorre publicly, as there were records of his utterances.
What did Charlie Sheen do after Two and a Half Men?
After getting help for his substance and alcohol abuse issues, Charlie Sheen returned to the spotlight. He confessed to his battles with addiction which were underlined by mental health issues.
Moreover, he revealed his HIV positive status in order to bring awareness and remove the stigma surrounding the disease.
Professionally, he continues to work on other television shows as a guest appearance or through a cameo playing a version of himself, and his last acting job was as the voice of Lance on Grizzly II.
Why will Charlie Sheen never go broke?
When Charlie Sheen was fired from Two and a Half Men, he was the highest paid actor on US television earning $2 million per episode he shot. Many wondered if due to his addiction issues at the time, whether he would go broke.
However, it seems that Sheen will never go broke. This is as the actor still receives royalties for the show, especially now that it is available on Netflix.
It was reported that Sheen also wanted to earn royalties for episodes and seasons that he was not a part of, but this was never confirmed.
That being said, Sheen allegedly earned over $100 million in a single year in royalties off of just Two and a Half Men.
Conclusion
Despite being off air for over six years, Two and a Half Men is still one of the most popular sitcoms on paid-subscription video-on-demand platforms like Netflix.
Moreover, original lead, Charlie Sheen is still synonymous with the show over a decade since he was fired.
A dismissal which was due to his alleged dangerously self-destructive conduct, with season eight being ended abruptly as a result.
When season nine commenced, Sheen’s permanent exit was confirmed, as his character, Charlie Harper died in a freak accident in Paris.
