Charlie Sheen was shown the doors during ‘Two and a Half Men’s famous firing episode, but that did not stop him earning from the reruns of the hit CBS series.
The crazy fact is that Charlie Sheen continues to make earning of around $100 million off the show regardless of his bitter relationship with the studios. He continues to reap the benefits of ‘Two and a Half Men’, making millions and millions without moving a single cell of his body.
Highlights —
- How Charlie Sheen makes money despite getting fired?
- Michael Fox clause and the irony
How Charlie Sheen earns money despite getting fired?
The TV analyst from Horizon Media Brad Adgate told FOX411,
“Syndication and global distribution of the show are going to be big moneymakers for Sheen”.
Warner Brothers were able to harvest around $4 million an episode for ‘Two and a Half Men’ in domestic syndication. Sheen, as the show’s former leading man, because of this, made approximately half a million per episode. His contract made him eligible for a revenue stream of around $88.5 million in fees from reruns.
It is a fact that comedy syndication deals are generally more lucrative than deals for scripted dramas. According to Fox, if an actor is wise in negotiating his contracts, he can typically receive a certain dollar amount or a percentage from any re-runs of their program.
In the past, when the hit comedy ‘Seinfeld’ finished its run, the actors made around $3 billion through syndication. Forbes had estimated that the lead actor Jerry Seinfeld earned $65 million to $80 million annually from re-runs.
Rumours had it that Sheen’s managers were considering this when they negotiated Sheen’s deal.
Michael Fox clause and the irony
’Two and a Half Men’ is one of the most successful syndicated comedies for adults. “TV by the Numbers” reported that more than 9.5 million viewers watched its reruns. And these figures are just concerning the U.S. ‘Two and a Half Men’ is a global phenomenon and draws a huge number of viewers for its reruns.
The series has made a great deal of money from DVD sales and Netflix rentals. Sheen gains approximately 10 percent from it. If we add up everything, he had earned around $100 million from the show.
Sheen’s lawyers had stated that a client should continue to be paid for episodes of the show he doesn’t star in. Charlie’s contract with Warner Bros. contained a clause, which is called “Michael J. Fox” clause. This clause refers to a loophole that provided the actor Michael J. Fox, his salary for the show ‘Spin City’ even after he stopped appearing on it.
It is ironic that Sheen was the actor who replaced Mr Michael Fox when Fox wanted to resign from the show due to Parkinson’s disease. Managers of Sheen stated to TMZ that Charlie Sheen has exactly the same clause in his contract with ‘Two and a Half Men’ for earnings. This clause enabled him to draw nearly $2 million an episode till the show continued.
On the other hand, sources close to Warner Brothers told FOX411 that there’s no such clause for Sheen. Warner Brothers outlined a litany of reasons why Sheen was fired from the show in an 11-page letter to Sheen’s lawyer. The reasons mentioned were “moral turpitude”, dangerously self-destructive behaviour, drug binges, and violence against women. Warner Brothers said that he is not eligible for further payment because he violated a lot of terms and conditions.
Charlie Sheen won the case and he is reaping the benefits by earning from the seed he sowed long before. Did he deserve the payment despite doing what he did? Let us know what you think about Charlie Sheen in the comments box below.
