At the peak of his career, Charlie Sheen, who was once one of the highest-paid television actors, was shown the door by Warner Bros. from Two and a Half Men in 2011. This was a result of the actor’s string of statements referencing drug usage and his criticisms against CBS and the sitcom producer Chuck Lorre.
But the impact of his shocking termination wasn’t only limited to the actor, as it sent shockwaves through Hollywood at the time, and The Big Bang Theory star Johnny Galecki also felt the heat of it.
Johnny Galecki Held Charlie Sheen Responsible for Putting Others’ Jobs in Peril
Considering the whole sitcom was built around Charlie Sheen’s character, who earned a whopping $1.8M salary for each episode, his exit left the Two and a Half Men cast and crew in limbo. Johnny Galecki, who played fan-favorite Leonard in Chuck Lorre’s other sitcom, The Big Bang Theory, also felt the sting of Sheen’s dramatic departure.
While the actor kept things to himself at the time, Galecki did later express his viewpoints about its impact on the cast and crew, which was further aggravated by Kaley Cuoco’s accident at the time.
The Charlie Sheen debacle was also happening, so between seeing how that affected the crew, and seeing Kaley’s accident—as much as she was an absolute f**king trooper—it taught the entire cast, myself included, a lesson of how these things affect two hundred people.
Following the impact of Sheen’s meltdown on the crew, when Galecki learned that the Charlie Harper actor was set to present 2011’s Emmys, he considered boycotting it.
Johnny Galecki Was Initially Against Attending 2011’s Emmys
Despite earning an Emmy nod for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series alongside the sitcom lead Jim Parsons, the Roseanne star considered not attending the ceremony because of Sheen. The actor recalled that he even notified Warner Bros. about the matter, as the Hot Shots star was responsible for “putting hundreds of people’s jobs in peril”.
Although Warner Bros. and producer Chuck Lorre reportedly campaigned for Sheen’s exit from the Emmys, which didn’t end up going their way, Galecki eventually decided against his initial call. Explaining his reasoning, the actor stressed that if he were supposed to win, he didn’t want the Two and a Half Men star to take the award on his behalf.
I realized, if I were to have won, Charlie would have accepted the award on my behalf. So I went. But I thought Jim handled a very charged situation very, very well. I wouldn’t have handled that as classily.
Even though according to John Cryer, Lorre and Sheen eventually patched things up, it doesn’t seem similar is going to be the case between him and Galecki anytime soon.
Two and a Half Men is available to stream on Max.
