As professional actors, TV stars make a living pretending to be someone they aren’t. Even though everyone knows that, a lot of people still expect actors who play pals onscreen to have a close relationship in real life. In reality, however, there have been several notable examples of actors who play friends onscreen despite disliking one another in real life.
When Two and a Half Men debuted on television in 2003, there was absolutely no doubt that Charlie Sheen was the show’s main star. As a result, it was truly incredible that as a result of Sheen’s longstanding feud with Two and a Half Men creator and showrunner Chuck Lorre, Charlie was fired from the show. After all, Two and a Half Men was a cash cow for everyone involved and there was no way to know if the show could survive without Sheen involved.
Given that Charlie Sheen and Chuck Lorre’s relationship became so toxic, that makes you wonder about what else happened behind the scenes of Two and a Half Men. For example, the most obvious question with that in mind is did Sheen and his longtime co-star Jon Cryer get along?
Sheen’s Perspective
When he was fired following the eighth season of Two and a Half Men, Charlie Sheen went through a period of great turmoil. During that era, Sheen made some extremely memorable remarks including his claim that he had tiger blood and stating that he was “winning”. In addition to those statements, most people remember that Sheen made it a habit to take shots at Chuck Lorre in every interview. On the other hand, everyone seems to have forgotten that at that time, Sheen had some very harsh things to say about Jon Cryer while talking to E! News.
“Like I said: You’re with me, or you’re with the trolls. Obviously, he’s with the trolls.” Says Sheen, “Jon has not called me. He’s a turncoat, a traitor, a troll. Clearly, he’s a troll. He issued a statement. Is it gonna take me calling him a ‘traitor, juvenile and scared’ for him to get it?”
Months after he made those statements, Charlie Sheen professed regret for saying mean things about Jon Cryer while talking to Playboy in 2012. “That was wrong. I whaled on him unnecessarily,” Sheen now admits. “He was trying to keep the sh-t together, trying to cover my ass, pick up the slack. He just got caught in the crossfire. He’s a beautiful man and a f-cking fabulous dude and I miss him. I need to repair that relationship, and I will. I will reach out and do whatever is necessary.”
Cryer Weighs In
During his long career, Jon Cryer has never been a dramatic figure. With that in mind, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that Cryer’s statements about his relationship with Charlie Sheen have been measured. For example, during a 2019 Access Online interview, Cryer was asked about working with Sheen and he made it pretty clear that it was taxing but he couched his comments in concern for Charlie. On top of that Cryer also paid respect to his former co-stars acting abilities.
“It was crazy. It was way more craziness than I really was hoping for, honestly,” he said with a laugh. It was tough to watch a guy who I had seen… you know, when we started the show, Charlie had been sober for a while and was really in control of his life. And it was tough to see that go away. That was the hardest part of being involved in that process. But actually doing the shows was always great. There was never a time when it wasn’t great.”
After those comments, Jon Cryer revealed that in 2019, it had been “a couple of years” since he last talked to Charlie Sheen. On top of that, Cryer addressed why Sheen wasn’t an ongoing part of his life. “It’s kind of a roller coaster when you have Charlie in your life and I just haven’t decided to get back on that roller coaster.”
Final Analysis
Keeping in mind the things that Charlie sheen and Jon Cryer have had to say about one another over the years, their statements paint a pretty clear picture. Of course, immediately following Sheen’s firing he had some nasty things to say about Jon Cryer. However, given the fact that that Sheen was a very unreliable narrator at that point and he has since taken back those comments, it seems like Charlie has no ill feelings for Jon.
For his part, Jon Cryer’s comments about Charlie Sheen seem to paint the picture that he genuinely wants the best for his former co-star. However, Cryer’s comments also make it pretty obvious that he doesn’t want to deal with the stresses of having Sheen be a part of his inner circle. With all of that in mind, it seems like the state of Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer’s relationship today is they have some affection for one another but they aren’t friends.
