By Christina Radish
Emmy Award-nominated Two and a Half Men is a comedy about men, women, sex, dating, divorce, mothers, single parenthood, sibling relations, surrogate families, money and, most importantly, love. More specifically, it’s about the lives of two brothers, one brother’s son, and the many women who surround them.
Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen) is a well-to-do bachelor with a house at the beach, a Mercedes in the garage and an easy way with women. But, his casual Malibu lifestyle is interrupted when his tightly wound brother, Alan (Jon Cryer), and Alan’s son, Jake (Angus T. Jones), come to stay with him. Complicating matters further are Charlie and Alan’s narcissistic, emotionally toxic mother, Evelyn (Holland Taylor), Alan’s deeply neurotic ex-wife, Judith (Marin Hinkle), Charlie’s domineering, unapologetically blue-collar housekeeper, Berta (Conchata Ferrell), and Rose (Melanie Lynskey), a brilliantly manipulative and vaguely crazy neighbor who had a brief fling with Charlie, is obsessed with him and is determined to stay in his life, by whatever means necessary. Despite the complexities of their lives and their own strained relationship, Charlie and Alan have one thing in common -- they both love Jake and want what’s best for him. As a result, they manage to create a little family unit that promises to make each of them a better man.
During a recent visit to the set of the CBS series, returning with new episodes on September 24th, the cast and producers spoke to MediaBlvd Magazine, along with various other outlets, about the upcoming season and plans for the 100th episode, as well as how proud they all are of their seven Emmy nominations.
MediaBlvd Magazine> Congratulations on all the Emmy nominations. Can you all talk about what that means for the show?
Jon Cryer> Obviously, it’s a great thing. I actually had the benefit of being the first person to know about it because, during rehearsals, I saw Charlie’s name come up and then the name of the show come up. I was very excited, at that moment, and wanted to call people, but I was legally not allowed to, before the actual broadcast. It’s an amazing honor for the show. Despite our tremendous pride in the show, I think we thought that last year was a fluke. Statistically, it’s almost impossible that this year was also a fluke.
Conchata Ferrell> I’m a supporting actor in a business that’s about stars. I love this show and I love this character, and it’s nice to be able to step up and take a little bow. But, now I have to get the damn dress.
Holland Taylor> The dress that you have to get is the very first thing that enters your mind right after, “Whoopie!” Chati and I are very dear friends, and we worked it out that, if either of us does win the Emmy, we will mud wrestle the other one.
MediaBlvd> How do you feel about this show not having much critical support, compared with some of the single-camera comedies that are on TV right now?
Conchata> I’ve wiped my bottom with a few newspapers.
Charlie Sheen> When all is said and done, your fans are your most important critics.
Jon> Actually, there have been plenty of critics who were actually very complimentary to the show. Actors and for writers invest so much of your personality into it, and whenever somebody finds it lacking, for whatever reason, you tend to wonder. I have been really happy with the way the show is received, in every respect, and I don’t read too much into what people’s perceptions are.
MediaBlvd> Everybody Loves Raymond, which had been on much longer than you guys have, ultimately wrapped up when they began to conclude that they didn’t really have any new, fresh stories to tell. Where are you in that continuum?
Chuck Lorre> The writing has been wonderful. This series is alive and well. The stories are coming and they’re great stories because we have great characters. We’ve got a young man who’s growing up and he’s going to be more challenging.
Lee Aronsohn> Believe it or not, the last two years, we have found the story process was actually easier than it was the first couple of years. In the first couple of years, we were still trying to figure out who these people were and what this show was. It’s only been in the last two years that we’ve really hit a stride. We have a young character who’s changing and growing, and the two brothers are also evolving.
MediaBlvd> Charlie, your camaraderie and chemistry with Jon is just as you would imagine two brothers would be. What kind of brotherly activities do you two do together, between scenes and after hours?
Charlie> We don’t do anything together. We spend so much time stuck together on set that to plan something away from there would be sort of redundant. It’s true, but it’s nothing personal.
Jon> It’s like, “Yeah, bye, see ya.”
Charlie> Plus, there’s not a lot of time, once we’re on set, to focus on anything other than the work. I don’t want to say that the show is dialogue heavy, but some of the situations are driven by what the characters are saying, so oftentimes we have a lot to say to describe the situation that we’re in. We spend the entire week trying to learn these words, unless you’re Angus. He looks at it once and “Presto!”
MediaBlvd> Angus, what is it like hanging out with Charlie and Jon?Angus> It’s fun. Me and Jon play video games, and me and Charlie play catch. It’s just a lot of fun.
Holland> Angus is usually doing some sports on the floor, like basketball, or riding a scooter.
Jon> He’s got this insane skateboard that’s got two wheels.
Holland> He’s such an athlete. It’s really astonishing.
Chuck> He’s a straight-A student, a terrific athlete and a great musician. He’s a remarkable young man.
Holland> It is amazing to have a kid growing up on a show. On some shows, kids just stay the same. They don’t really change. But, Angus has changed tremendously, and the writing has shown that. He’s growing up, and that’s a whole different set of problems.
MediaBlvd> Chuck, you have managed to get away with more than most people on broadcast television, in terms of content and jokes. As Angus gets older, does that give you more license, or do you think the tone is going to be about the same?
Chuck> We always make an effort to try. If you’re watching the show with your children, you probably shouldn’t be. But, if you are, it should sail over children’s heads.
Lee> The real difference in the way that we’re writing now, as opposed to the way we were writing in the first year, is that the character understands more. The tone is the same, but as the character of Jake grows up, he is a little more plugged in and a little more aware. Most of the time, for the first couple of years, everything went over the character’s head. We were very careful.
MediaBlvd> What happens as Angus continues to grow? What are the challenges ahead as he matures and becomes more of an adolescent and teenager? Are you going to have to call the show Three Men, at some point?
Chuck> From a writing perspective, it’s better for us because the challenges are greater and there’s more comedy to play. He’s going to start bringing home girls. His life will get more complicated. As writers, we’re thrilled.
MediaBlvd> Is there a particular tipping point, where the character really changes?
Chuck> About 30.
Conchata> When he’s taller than Charlie and Jon.
MediaBlvd> Chuck, with Drive being done, are there plans for Melanie Lynskey to return to the show?
Chuck> Yes, we’re bringing Melanie back.
MediaBlvd> How are you going to reintroduce her character?
Chuck> I can’t give it away. It’s our 100th Episode and we’re excited about it. It’s a terrific episode that introduces her back into the lives of our guys.
MediaBlvd> Will she be a regular?
Chuck> For now, it’s a recurring character. She’ll have a recurring relationship with the show. I hope we have her back as often as we can. We love her.
MediaBlvd> The 100th episode milestone is important for a TV show, from a business standpoint, for syndication and all that. How early into the run of the show did you think that you were going to get there?
Chuck> The night we shot the pilot. I had no doubt about it. Watching these guys together that first episode was so exciting. It was one of those exciting nights where you just go, “Oh, my God, this is way beyond what we thought it could possibly be.” So, that was the night I knew.
MediaBlvd> Were the cast members as confident?
Jon> It was actually my birthday. I was cutting the cake and I said, “I hope the same people are here 10 years from now.” I’m much more optimistic.
Marin Hinkle> This is the first sitcom that I have ever been a part of. I don’t know if I ever told these guys that. I said I had done a lot of them. I was seven months pregnant, so Chuck kindly let me sit down for the two scenes that I had, and I did have a moment, when it all finished. I brought some friends to the taping and I thought, “My son is probably going to grow up on this soundstage.” I had this gut feeling that this thing was going to be around for a while, which felt great.
MediaBlvd> Any other hints, in regard to the upcoming season?
Lee> We told you that Rose does return. We’re putting Jake in junior high, so that’s a big transition for him. And, both Charlie and Jon get into a couple of interesting relationships, in the first few episodes.
MediaBlvd> Anyone cast to play opposite them yet?Chuck> Janeane Garofalo is coming onto the show this year, to play a paramour for Jon. It’s going to be one of his bad choices.
MediaBlvd> Charlie, no matter how much time seems to pass, your persona still remains the stock figure in the jokes of late night comedians. Does that get old for you?
Charlie> Well, there’s several people, at least in the last year, that have snatched that torch from me. I just stay home and let it, but I feel for them. It’s not that complicated to hire a car or carry some extra cab fare. As far as that goes, it’s a double-edged sword because you are honored that you made the opening monologue, and if the joke is really smart, it softens the blow. But, when it’s a cheap shot and a bad joke, it’s not good. I’m with my kids and my fiancee. I don’t lead that life anymore, so they have backed off. Now, it’s Jon’s turn.
