The protracted conflict between Charlie Sheen and Warner Brothers Television ended quietly on Monday when the two sides agreed to settle a lawsuit the actor filed after the studio fired him from the hit CBS sitcom, “Two and a Half Men.”
Warner Brothers issued a statement saying that the settlement had been agreed “to the parties’ mutual satisfaction.” Mr. Sheen had also sued the comedy’s executive producer, Chuck Lorre, and that action was also settled by the agreement. No terms were disclosed and the statement said all the parties had “agreed to maintain confidentiality over the terms.”
Mr. Sheen filed his $100 million suit — saying he had been unjustly fired — in March, using especially vituperative language that was directed at both Warner Brothers executives and Mr. Lorre. Mr. Sheen said he was entitled to his salary for the eight episodes of the show that were not completed last season (at an estimated salary of $1 million an episode) and to a continued financial stake in future episodes, even though he would no longer act in them.
The show did continue, with Ashton Kutcher replacing Mr. Sheen as its star, and its premiere episode last week drew the biggest ratings in the program’s history. The high ratings make it likely that the series will be able to produce many more episodes.
In comments made before the settlement, executives involved in the negotiations said Mr. Sheen was not likely to be paid for the episodes that were not produced, nor was he likely to receive any fee from syndication sales of future episodes that star Mr. Kutcher.
But the studio, which had not sent Mr. Sheen a check since March, was prepared to fulfill its obligation to pay Mr. Sheen an undisclosed amount for the syndication sales of all episodes of the show that he did star in.
Mr. Sheen’s suit was hamstrung from the start by contractual terms, which dictated that the dispute would be handled by arbitration. But Mr. Sheen also began to make conciliatory public statements in recent months, taking the blame for the actions that ended his participation in the show.
Mr. Sheen did not release a statement on the settlement and calls to his lawyer, Martin Singer, were not returned Monday evening.
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