Charlie Sheen Was TV’s Highest-Paid Actor. His Addiction Almost Cost Him Everything.

Key Takeaways:

• Not long after he rose to fame, actor Charlie Sheen began struggling with substance abuse. He had several stints in rehab and was convicted of multiple misdemeanors between 1990 and 2010.
• His addiction led to his high-profile firing from Two and a Half Men in 2011.
• Now 60 and sober, Sheen has slowly began piecing his life and career back together.

By 2010, Charlie Sheen earned $1.8 million per episode of Two and Half Men, making him the highest-paid actor on television. Within a year, his lucrative part was all over.

Sheen’s shocking firing from the hit sitcom in 2011 was just part of the fallout from the actor’s decades-long battle with drug and alcohol abuse. The 60-year-old is confronting this and other dark moments from his career with the release of his new memoir, The Book of Sheen, and the two-part documentary aka Charlie Sheen.

Premiering Wednesday on Netflix, the documentary features candid interviews with Sheen, his ex-wives, and former co-stars about the actor’s rise to fame and seemingly made-for-tabloids personal life. Sheen enjoyed rapid success in both movies and on TV but struggled to mask his addiction behind the scenes. Eventually, the actor realized more than his career was at stake and had to make drastic changes or else.

Sheen first entered rehab in 1990

Sheen, the son of actor Martin Sheen and brother of Emilio Estévez, was born Carlos Irwin Estévez in September 1965. The young actor rose to prominence with his role in Oliver Stone’s 1986 war film Platoon. More box-office successes followed in Wall Street (1987), Young Guns (1988), and Major League (1989).

Charlie Sheen became an actor like his father, Martin Sheen.

Along with his fame, Sheen already started to cement his reputation as a Hollywood bad boy. In 1990, he checked into drug and alcohol rehabilitation for the first time, signaling his prolonged battle with addiction that lay ahead. The actor later admitted he started drinking partially as a way to cope with a lifelong stutter.

Sheen had other vices as well. He later testified in the trial of infamous “Hollywood madam” Heidi Fleiss, admitting he used her prostitution service at least 27 times and paid more than $50,000. His own romantic relationships also made headlines for the wrong reasons. In December 1996, Sheen was arrested following a domestic dispute with ex-girlfriend Brittany Ashland. He later received a misdemeanor battery conviction and was placed on probation.

Then in 1998, Sheen was hospitalized in Los Angeles after he tried to inject cocaine and accidentally overdosed. His father turned him into authorities for violating his probation terms. “It felt like just the biggest betrayal you could possibly endure,” Charlie told GMA’s Michael Strahan of the incident.

Still, the Platoon star seemingly turned a corner after the embarrassing episode, claiming he became sober for several years. It coincided with his career revival on TV.

He hid his drug use on Two and a Half Men

Sheen had his small screen breakout on the sitcom Spin City, replacing star Michael J. Fox in 2000 and winning a Golden Globe for his role two years later.

Then starting in 2003, Sheen earned even more acclaim for his starring role as Charlie Harper on Two and a Half Men. The raunchy CBS comedy, also featuring Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones, earned 47 Emmy nominations during its 12-season run—including four for Sheen for best actor in a comedy series.

Two and a Half Men—starring Charlie Sheen, Angus T. Jones, and Jon Cryer—became a wildly popular sitcom after his 2003 premiere.

But behind the cameras, Sheen’s personal struggles had returned. According to GMA, he experienced a relapse with prescription pills during the show’s run. Sheen struggled to maintain his sobriety on set and keep up an affable demeanor for his co-stars.

By 2009, the facade began to drop. That December, Sheen was arrested following a domestic violence incident with his third wife, Brooke Mueller. He later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault and was sentenced to a month in a rehabilitation center. In October 2010, he was arrested again after trashing a New York City hotel room and reportedly admitted to police he had been drinking and using cocaine.

Within three months, production on Two and a Half Men had stopped after Sheen missed rehearsals and entered rehab once again.

The actor was fired and has made some amends

In March 2011, CBS officially terminated Sheen’s contract. Starting with the ninth season, he was replaced on Two and a Half Men with a new character played by Ashton Kutcher.

Charlie Sheen attends a court appearance in Aspen, Colorado, in March 2010.

Amid the controversy surrounding the show and his behavior, Sheen sued sitcom creator Chuck Lorre and Warner Brothers for wrongful termination. He also gave a memorable interview to 20/20 in which he denied the speculation that he suffered from bipolar disorder and openly boasted of his past drug use.

“I’m bi-winning. I win here and I win there,” Sheen said, adding he had a unique body constitution that included “tiger blood.” In his memoir, he attributes the outburst to not only drugs, but also an addiction to a testosterone cream.

Sheen later settled his lawsuit against Lorre and, although the pair didn’t talk for more than a decade, they have since reconciled. Lorre even collaborated with the actor for the TV comedy Bookie in 2023 and 2024.

However, Jon Cryer hasn’t been as quick to reunite. In 2024, the actor told The View he would be hesitant to work with Sheen again. “I love him, I wish him the best, he should live in good health for the rest of his life, but I don’t know if I want to get in business with him for any length of time,” he said, according to People.

Cryer does appear in the new documentary and, although he didn’t speak to Sheen personally, suggested the actor’s struggles might have stemmed from a lack of self-confidence. Sheen admits this is largely accurate.

“Suddenly, I felt like I was on a couch in Jon’s therapy office, and he was dead on,” Sheen said. “That’s something that I’ve felt my whole life, because I had no formal training. I had no formal education, I didn’t even finish high school. And suddenly I’m working and traveling, I’m a star and all this stuff. It just happened. There was no plan. And there was always the voice of doubt there, telling me it’s only a matter of time before this all goes away, so to enjoy this as heartily as you can.”

Sheen has been sober for 8 years

Sheen says he gave up alcohol in 2017 and has now been sober for 8 years. The actor has also been candid about his HIV diagnosis. His reveal in November 2015 sparked increased interest related to disease prevention and testing, unofficially called the “Charlie Sheen effect.”

One of the driving forces for his lifestyle change was his family. The actor, who got divorced from Mueller in 2011, is a father of five: Cassandra, 40; Sami, 21; Lola, 20; and twins Bob and Max, 17.

Charlie Sheen is confronting his troubled past in the Netflix documentary aka Charlie Sheen and a new memoir.

Sheen offered insight into his new habits in 2023, saying he works out daily and appreciates spending time with his children. He also gained a new perspective on life after the death of late Friends actor Matthew Perry, who died in 2023 following his own battle with substance abuse. It spurred him to read Perry’s memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.

“I can relate to it so much of it. Because I was reliving or I was experiencing it with him. A lot of the struggle, a lot of the obsession,” Sheen told Deadline. “When you’re at that fork in the road when there are 76 really good choices, and you go with number 77. A lot of it really spoke to me, and I knew him a little bit from out in the world, from AA occasionally, and he was lovely.”

Sheen admits he could have easily experienced the same fate if he never confronted his own behavior. “I’m proud of the choices that I’ve made and the changes I’ve made to live a life today that will never look like that mess,” he said. “That was some alien version of myself.”

Tyler Piccotti

News and Culture Editor, Biography.com

Tyler Piccotti joined the Biography.com staff as an Associate News Editor and is now the News and Culture Editor. He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor for a daily newspaper recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors. In his current role, he shares the true stories behind your favorite movies and TV shows and profiles rising musicians, actors, and athletes. When he's not working, you can find him at the nearest amusement park or movie theater and cheering on his favorite teams.