The “Two and a Half Men” series finale aired on Thursday, featuring the revelation that Charlie Sheen’s character Charlie Harper was alive, although the actor himself did not appear, with the whole episode set up to mock him. Get all the details and see video below.
As Extreme Entertainment reported in recent months, Sheen made no secret of his desire to make an appearance on the last episode of the series he infamously left in 2011 following a major feud with creator Chuck Lorre. Warner Bros. initially denied they were in negotiations with Sheen, though Jon Cryer and Ashton Kutcher, who replaced Sheen, were cagey in recent weeks when asked whether he would in fact make a cameo. Further complicating matters, of course, is the fact that it was revealed Charlie Harper diedin the 2011 season 9 premiere.
The series finale, called “Of Course He’s Dead,” began with a flashback to Charlie’s funeral four years ago, before returning to the present day, where Alan received a letter addressed to Charlie that revealed there was $2.5 million in unclaimed music royalties tied to his name. In order to the claim the money as Charlie’s next of kin, Alan had to prove his brother was really dead, a hard challenge considering he couldn’t find a death certificate and there was no body after Charlie was supposedly fatally hit by a train.
At the same time, Charlie’s former stalker-turned-love interest Rose was seen delivering food and clothing to a prisoner in her makeshift dungeon. Of course, she was the only one to supposedly witness Harper’s train death in France, which supposedly occurred after she caught him cheating. The mysterious person she was keeping hidden, however, managed to escape. Despite Walden’s skepticism, Alan started to believe Charlie was still alive after he received a threatening text message and a package of things only Charlie would like, and then found out the money had been transferred to an account in the Cayman islands.
Soon Charlie’s daughter Jenny and his exes started receiving checks and apology letters, and Rose finally revealed to Alan that his brother was in fact still alive… “kinda.” In an animated flashback featuring a likeness of Sheen, Rose recounted the Paris events, revealing she wanted revenge for his infidelity, and was about to push him in front of the train when she decided instead to kidnap and hold him hostage in her home for the last four years. That is, until he just escaped. Then, after receiving another threatening message, believed to be from Charlie seeking revenge for what he’d been through, Alan and Walden went to a detective… played by Arnold Schwarzenegger… for help.
The next surprise appearance? Angus T. Jones as Jake, who revealed he hadn’t actually been in the army since his moving out, but was winning millions in Las Vegas and married to a dancer who lived in Japan. John Stamos was the next cameo, playing himself and the new paramour of Walden’s ex-wife, who Walden called as he and Alan, fearing for their lives with a vengeful Charlie on the loose, called people from their past to make amends and say goodbye. Christian Slater appeared next, as the man police mistakenly apprehended in Charlie’s place.
Convinced that Charlie was in custody, Alan and Walden celebrated… just as Charlie, seen from the back, walked up to the family house… and a piano was dropped on his head, killing him. The camera zoomed out to reveal Lorre in a director’s chair, and he looked right into the camera and said Sheen’s catchphrase “winning,” before a piano fell and smashed him to bits, too. That was it. The end.
Throughout the episode there were jokes alluding to Sheen’s real-life debauchery, Kutcher replacing him, one of Sheen’s venomous messages to Lorre during their falling out, and more. There was also lot of self-referential dialogue that essentially recapped the whole 12-year series. In his final vanity card, Lorre explained why Sheen wasn’t actually featured on camera. “I know a lot of you might be disappointed that you didn’t get to see Charlie Sheen in tonight’s finale. For the record he was offered a role,” it read.
Lorre went on to claim, “Our idea was to haves him walk up to the front door in the last scene, ring the doorbell, then turn, look directly into the camera and go off on a maniacal rant about the dangers of drug abuse. He would then explain that these dangers only apply to average people. That he was far from average. He was a ninja warrior from Mars. He was invincible. And then we would drop a piano on him. We thought it was funny. He didn’t.”
“Instead, he wanted us to write a heart-warming scene that would set up his return to primetime TV in a new sitcom called The Harpers starring him and Jon Cryer,” Lorre revealed. “We thought that was funny too.” Watch the ending below.
Sheen more or less confirmed he would not appear on the series finale in a Twitter message shared hours before the episode aired. “Attention World: If you’re looking for my much anticipated cameo on network TV, you’ll have to check out ‘The Goldbergs,'” he wrote. (As Extreme Entertainment reported, Sheen is slated to appear on next week’s episode, reprising his Ferris Bueller’s Day Off role.) He pointedly added, “I go where the love is,” and ended with the hashtag, “#OfCourseImNot,” referencing the series finale title “Of Couse He’s Dead.”
What do you think of the series finale? Are you disappointed Sheen didn’t actually appear? Were all of Lorre’s digs appropriate? And which celebrity cameo was your favorite?
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