For twelve years in a row, one of the most popular sitcoms in the US, which was officially completed this year, was broadcast on the American television channel SBC. Thanks to this TV show, the actors “Two and a Half Men” became popular not only in America but also around the world, although the main stars of the series, Charlie Sheen and Ashton Kutcher who replaced him, did not need a special introduction before that.
A little bit about the plot
At the center of the story are two Harper brothers trying to get along under one roof. The eldest, Charlie, successfully creates music videos for advertising, owns a luxurious mansion on the ocean in Malibu and burns his life at parties, his main passions in life are women and alcohol. The youngest, Allan, is a manual therapist who is terribly unlucky in life, after a divorce from his wife, who peeled him like sticky, he temporarily moves to his older brother with his son Jake. Jake, in turn, is a typical teenager who needs nothing more than food and video games. And these three have to get along under one roof, despite the fact that both Charlie and Allan do not approve of each other's lifestyles, and both try to teach Jake the mind, each in its own way. The actors of “Two and a Half Men” coped with their task perfectly, their skirmishes and disputes look really comical and emotional. Confirmation of this is the unconditional love of the audience and many awards and prizes, including the Golden Globe.
Scandalous Charlie
In the series “Two and a Half Men,” the actors and roles were selected perfectly. For example, the elder brother is played by the famous brawler Charlie Sheen, who became famous not only for his successful work in film and television, but also for his love affairs, as well as the abuse of alcohol and drugs, which, in fact, led to the dismissal of the actor from the series. In the middle of filming the eighth season, Charlie was hospitalized after a 36-hour party, and then underwent treatment at a rehabilitation clinic. Filming had to stop. After leaving the clinic, the actor gave a scandalous interview where he expressed himself very insultingly towards the producer of the series Chuck Lorry, which was the last straw for the creators of the show. So Sheen, one might say, was lucky to embody practically himself in the sitcom, which is probably why his Charlie looks so convincing. But be that as it may, before the series, Shin already had a really impressive filmography and world fame. His most famous works are films “Platoon”, “Wall Street”, “Major League”, as well as two popular comedy action films “Hot Heads”.
Unlucky brother
Not all the leading actors in the series “Two and a Half Men” can boast of a significant track record before filming in the sitcom, but the performer of the role of Allan Harper, John Cryer, was also not a newbie in the movie, and especially on television. By the way, he already had to play with Shin on the same platform in the movie "Hot Heads", so that the interaction of the actors was already established, and this is also clearly visible in the frame. In addition, Kreyer is known to a wide audience of viewers also for the films “Girl in Pink” and “Back-to-Back”. Prior to the series “Two and a Half Men,” John did not have successful roles on TV, all of his works were not very well-known or frankly failing, but this did not stop him from receiving four Emmy nominations later and winning two of them for the role of Allan Harper. Cryer is also involved in scripting, producing, and directing himself.
From cinema to religion
But with the performer of the role of Jake Harper, not everything is so simple. Angus Jones was still very young at the beginning of the filming of the series, but had already managed to work in several films and series, in particular in the famous "Ambulance". But Jones was not like all the actors. “Two and a half people” brought him real fame, two Young Actor awards, thanks to the sitcom he became the highest paid young actor on television, but Jones did not manage to be grateful. In 2012, Angus made a scandalous statement, calling the series that presented him popularity “dirt”, urged viewers to stop watching and lamented about his participation in it, but at the same time remained there to play, although his character moved to the rank of secondary ones. According to the actor, the series does not correspond to his religious beliefs, which have recently become a priority for Jones career.
A holy place is never empty
Not all the main actors of “Two and a Half Men” were in the series from the very beginning. Hollywood star Ashton Kutcher in the ninth season took the vacant position of the main character of the sitcom after the scandalous departure of Charlie Sheen and pretty well got accustomed. His character's name is Walden Schmidt, it is he who is going to buy the mansion Charlie, put up for sale by Allan after the death of his brother. Walden and the younger Harper find a common language, because the Internet entrepreneur, like Allan in his time, is undergoing a difficult divorce and is on the verge of suicide. As a result, both men got along, and Schmidt decided to leave the former tenant with his son in his mansion until Harper solved his problems. The arrival of the new hero freshened up the series a bit, and Ashton fit in nicely with the team, so the sitcom after that lasted another four seasons.
Persons famous and not very
But not only the main actors of the film “Two and a Half Men” deserve close attention. A very remarkable character is the Harper brothers' mother named Evelyn, played by Holland Taylor. In the distant past, the singer, and now a successful agent for the sale of luxury real estate, she never took a proper part in the life of her sons. And when the adults Charlie and Allan paid her back with the same coin, it hit her terribly, and this very bitchy person brings a lot of chaos to the brothers' difficult life. The sarcastic housekeeper Berta performed by Conchata Ferrell became almost a member of the family in Charlie's house, without her sound irony and wise advice, men would be much worse. Melanie Linsky embodied Rose on the screen, a rich neighbor who was madly in love with Charlie, following on his heels and finally got her way. The eccentric Judith Harper, Allan's first wife and Jake's mother, was played by Marine Hinckle, and the role of blonde nympho Candy, who managed from one-day girlfriend Charlie to become Allan's second wife, went to actress April Bowlby. These are the most permanent actors in the TV series “Two and a Half Men”. The 11th season was marked by the departure from the main part of Jake and the appearance of lesbian Jennifer Harper, as it turned out to Charlie's daughter, who was unsuccessfully searching for her father and remained in the sitcom until the last episode.
Over the years, the episodes of the series “Two and a Half Men” have featured a considerable number of eminent guest stars, including Enrique Iglessias, Brooke Shields, Megan Fox, Steve Tyler, Tori Hatcher, Miley Cyrus, Mila Kunis, Arnold Schwarzenegger and many others.