EXCLUSIVE: Charlie Sheen Needs The Money -- Will Return To Hit Show
April 4 2010, Published 12:14 p.m. ET
Charlie Sheen will return to his hit TV show because he needs the money, RadarOnline.com is reporting exclusively.
Recent reports have claimed Sheen will not be back to star on CBS’ Two and a Half Men next season, but a source close to the situation tells RadarOnline.com that Charlie is trying to cut the best deal he can but will definitely return because he needs the paycheck.
“He doesn’t have the movie career he once had,” the source points out. “And even now he’s got a good deal with the TV show, but he needs the money to keep his lifestyle going and to keep his career hot.”
Sheen is racking up big legal bills defending himself against domestic violence charges in Aspen stemming from his Christmas arrest. He recently brought top L.A. lawyer Steve Cochran onto his team to join his local counsel.
Hal Haddon, Kobe Bryant’s former lawyer, has not yet joined the defense although he has been contacted and reviewed the case file.
“Charlie ripped through a fortune in the past when he was a movie star and doing a lot of drugs,” the source told RadarOnline.com. “He could have been set for life financially.
“But he blew a ton of money on his party lifestyle and it has taken him a while to rebuild his career.”
Two and a Half Men pays Charlie extremely well but his contract is up. He’s now looking for more than one million dollars per episode. Sheen is currently still in rehab and his wife Brooke Mueller is receiving rehab treatment at home, according to her lawyer.
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“The reports that Charlie won’t be back are wrong,” the source told RadarOnline.com. “Every star who is renegotiating loves to float a report that they won’t come back, hoping it creates negotiating leverage.
“CBS needs the show and Charlie knows that. But Charlie needs the show and CBS knows that.”
AUDIO: Brooke Mueller's 911 Call -- "I'm Scared For My Life"
Sheen has managed to rebuild some of his fortune, the source adds, but is not going to turn his back on a big paycheck, even if it’s not the amount her wants.
“Charlie has kids. Charlie has bills. He has an expensive lifestyle,” the source told RadarOnline.com. “He can’t just turn off the income. No one is going to pay him millions to star in a movie right now. Even the biggest stars are facing smaller paychecks in Hollywood these days and Charlie is a TV star now, not a movie star.
“That’s a huge difference.”
Bottom line: Expect negotiations to continue but there’s no doubt Charlie will return, says the source.
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“It’s not a question of if he wants to,” the source added. “He needs to.”