Chuck Lorre memoir says Hugh Grant was offered Charlie Sheen's Two and a Half Men role
In his memoir "Sitcom" and an E! News interview, Two and a Half Men creator Chuck Lorre says Hugh Grant was lined up to replace Charlie Sheen but backed out before signing. Ashton Kutcher took the role instead.
1 / 2
The story, neutrally told
Left · 1Chuck Lorre, creator of Two and a Half Men, told E! News that Hugh Grant was approached to replace Charlie Sheen on the CBS sitcom but backed out before signing a contract. The IndependentLC ““When it came time to sign a contract and proceed, he bailed. He just bailed,” Lorre continued.” Read at The Independent ↗ The IndependentLC “Lorre told E! News that Grant ultimately passed” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Lorre said that he and his writing partner Lee Aronsohn wrote several scenes for a character "very much like a Hugh Grant type of character". The IndependentLC “Lee Aronsohn and I, my partner on that project, wrote several scenes to show him what we thought might be a character that he would play” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1According to Lorre's memoir, Grant was offered $750,000 per episode and a four-day work week. The IndependentLC “Grant was offered $750,000 per episode and a four-day work week.” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1Lorre said Grant was "on board for a moment", and that he has not spoken with Grant since an agent or manager called to say Grant did not want to do it. The Independent said it had contacted a representative for Grant for comment. The IndependentLC “Grant was “on board for a moment,” Lorre told the publication.”“The Independent has contacted a representative for Grant for comment.” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Lorre said he then told then-CBS president Les Moonves, "I guess the show is over", but Moonves urged a meeting with Ashton Kutcher, who joined the show. The IndependentLC “However, Moonves urged Lorre to meet with Kutcher instead.” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Lorre described Kutcher as "sharp and funny" and said the four years with Kutcher had "absolutely no drama, no crisis". The IndependentLC “We wound up doing four years with Ashton and we had a lot of fun. And there was absolutely no drama, no crisis.” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1Sheen starred from 2003 to 2011 and was fired after erratic behaviour and disparaging remarks about Lorre. The show ran four more seasons after Sheen left, with Kutcher co-starring alongside Jon Cryer from 2011 to 2015. The IndependentLC “Sheen starred on the show from 2003 to 2011 before he was infamously fired after exhibiting erratic behavior and making disparaging remarks about the show’s creator, Chuck Lorre.” Read at The Independent ↗ The IndependentLC “Ashton Kutcher who co-starred with Cryer for four seasons from 2011 to 2015” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1The memoir also says CBS casting head Peter Golden warned Lorre in 2003 against casting Jon Cryer, saying "we don't want to hear the words ‘Jon Cryer’", because Cryer had been in several failed pilots and series. The IndependentLC ““Just be warned, we don't want to hear the words ‘Jon Cryer.’”” Read at The Independent ↗ Left · 1Lorre pushed back, got Cryer an audition alongside Sheen in front of Moonves, and Cryer was cast. Cryer went on to win two Emmys for playing Alan Harper. The IndependentLC “went on to win two Emmys for the role of Alan Harper”“He secured the actor an audition alongside Sheen” Read at The Independent ↗
Left · 1Variety's interview with Lorre about the memoir, "Sitcom: A Memoir", covers wider ground, including Lorre's ten years in Scientology and clashes with Roseanne Barr, Brett Butler and Cybill Shepherd. VarietyLC “Roseanne Barr, Brett Butler, Cybill Shepherd and, of course, Charlie Sh”“Lorre’s ten-year journey through Scientology may be the most surprising thing” Read at Variety ↗ Left · 1Variety says Lorre and Sheen later reconciled while working together on "Bookie", and that Sheen wrote a blurb for the book. VarietyLC “we reconciled [on Lorre’s show ‘Bookie’]”“one of the funniest things is Charlie’s blurb” Read at Variety ↗ Left · 1The memoir, "Sitcom", is due out on 13 October. The IndependentLC “which is slated to be released October 13” Read at The Independent ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left2 outlets
- Framing
- The Independent leads on the celebrity casting anecdote: Grant nearly replaced Sheen, then Cryer's casting battle. Variety treats the memoir as a wider career confession and interview, with the Sheen feud as one strand among many.
- Emphasis
- Casting what-ifs, Lorre's own quotes, and the Sheen feud and reconciliation. Variety also stresses Scientology and Lorre's clashes with other stars.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Neither outlet carries a response from Grant. The Independent only says it contacted a representative. Variety's text does not mention the Grant episode.
- Charged language
- “King of Sitcoms”“infamously fired”“meltdown”
- For example
-
“Charlie Sheen’s exit from Two and a Half Men paved the way for Ashton Kutcher to join the sitcom” — The Independent
“the well-publicized spat with Charlie Sheen that almost derailed Two and a Half Men in 2011” — The Independent
“Lorre recounts the highs and lows of his career.” — Variety
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- Chuck Lorre's memoir Sitcom comes out on 13 October.
- Lorre says Hugh Grant was considered as Charlie Sheen's replacement on Two and a Half Men.
- Ashton Kutcher replaced Sheen and co-starred with Jon Cryer for four seasons.
Chuck Lorre person
Says Grant was offered the role, then backed out. Describes the Kutcher years as drama-free and says that in the memoir he tells the truth about his life without sugarcoating it.
“he bailed. He just bailed” — The Independent
“There was no point in doing it if I was going to sugarcoat my life.” — Variety
Charlie Sheen person
Fired in 2011 after the feud with Lorre. Variety says the two later reconciled and Sheen wrote a blurb for the memoir.
“one of the funniest things is Charlie’s blurb” — Variety
Jon Cryer person
Per the memoir, Cryer was opposed by CBS casting but impressed in his audition and won two Emmys. No comment from Cryer is quoted.
“Cryer’s performance was so impressive that Lorre clapped when he was done” — The Independent
Left4 articles
-
Charlie Sheen was nearly replaced by beloved romcom star on Two and a Half Men, creator reveals
Neutral Straight entertainment report on Lorre's claim that Grant nearly replaced Sheen, with Kutcher as the eventual successor.
-
Chuck Lorre reveals star who nearly replaced Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men
Neutral Follow-up headline on the same Lorre reveal.
-
Two and a Half men creator was told Jon Cryer would be ‘death’ of show before Charlie Sheen meltdown
Neutral Uses the memoir, via USA Today, to tell how Lorre fought CBS to cast Cryer, with the Grant story as an aside.
-
Neutral Long interview-driven profile of Lorre's memoir, centred on Scientology and difficult stars, with the Sheen reconciliation.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 12 Oct 18:04 First The IndependentLC Charlie Sheen was nearly replaced by beloved romcom star on Two and a Half Men, creator reveals
- 13 Oct 14:41 +20h 37m The IndependentLC Chuck Lorre reveals star who nearly replaced Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men
- 13 Oct 18:40 +24h 36m The IndependentLC Two and a Half men creator was told Jon Cryer would be ‘death’ of show before Charlie Sheen meltdown
- 13 Oct 22:30 +28h 26m VarietyLC Chuck Lorre Tells All: His 10 Years in Scientology, Clashes With Stars Like Roseanne and Brett Butler, and How ‘The Big Bang Theory’ Cast Shocked Him
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
Ask about this story
Loading…