Chuck Lorre Admits He Was ‘Absolutely Wrong’ for Doubting Ashton Kutcher’s Casting on “Two and a Half Men” (Exclusive)

Deirdre DurkanMon, October 19, 2026 at 7:31 PM UTC

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Credit: Neil Mockford/WireImage;Gary Gershoff/GettyThe sitcom creator tells PEOPLE that Ashton Kutcher brought “so much light” to the set after Charlie Sheen’s controversial departure -

Chuck Lorre admits he initially had reservations about casting Ashton Kutcher to replace Charlie Sheen on Two and a Half Men

“He brought so much light into that stage that had experienced so much darkness and so much chaos,” Lorre now tells PEOPLE

In his new memoir, Sitcom, Lorre also reveals how Hugh Grant nearly landed the role before Kutcher joined the series

Chuck Lorre is looking back on one of the biggest casting decisions of his career, admitting he almost got it wrong.

The legendary sitcom creator, 73, tells PEOPLE he at first had doubts about Ashton Kutcher joining Two and a Half Men after Charlie Sheen’s tumultuous departure from the hit CBS comedy in 2011.

“My reservation was I had this built-in idea that he was too young for the part,” Lorre tells PEOPLE in an interview on Tuesday, Oct. 13, the day his new memoir, Sitcom, was released. “But I was absolutely wrong.”

Looking back, Lorre says the actor, who ultimately joined the series as internet billionaire Walden Schmidt, was exactly what the show needed during a particularly difficult chapter. “He brought so much light into that stage that had experienced so much darkness and so much chaos,” Lorre recalls.

Ashton Kutcher as Walden Schmidt and Jon Cryer as Alan Harper on ‘Two and a Half Men’Credit: CBS

“We did 88 episodes with Ashton, four years, and we had a good time,” he continues. “Everybody made a lot of money and had a great time doing it. So I’ve just got to count myself as being very grateful for that man.”

In Sitcom, Lorre details the behind-the-scenes scramble to keep Two and a Half Men alive after Sheen’s highly publicized exit, revealing that Kutcher wasn’t initially the first choice to replace the show’s longtime leading man.

Instead, Hugh Grant was approached about joining the comedy, with CBS and Warner Bros. offering the British actor $750,000 per episode and a four-day workweek.

Lorre recalls meeting with Grant and writing test scenes with fellow producer Lee Aronsohn to help the actor envision his potential character. Though Grant expressed concerns about performing in front of a live studio audience, according to the book, Lorre assured him that the show could accommodate his preference.

However, the deal unexpectedly fell apart. “I was told he had a pen in hand and was about to sign the contract when he abruptly walked out of the room...,” Lorre writes. According to the producer, Grant’s team eventually informed the team that the actor had decided against joining the series.

With the show’s future once again uncertain, then-CBS executive Les Moonves pushed Lorre to meet with Kutcher. “Les instructed me to meet with Ashton Kutcher. I expressed concern that he was too young for what we had in mind,” Lorre writes.

‘Sitcom’ by Chuck LorreCredit: Dey Street Books

Despite his reservations, Lorre agreed to meet with the actor in Pacific Palisades, Calif., where Kutcher quickly made an impression.

In the memoir, Lorre describes Kutcher as charming and funny, recalling how the actor’s interest in technology eventually helped inspire his character, a wealthy internet entrepreneur navigating heartbreak. Kutcher officially joined Two and a Half Men for its ninth season in 2011 and remained with the series until its conclusion in 2015.

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In his memoir, Lorre credits Moonves’ determination to keep the comedy going with extending its run by another four seasons. He also reveals that Kutcher earned $63 million during his time on the series.

The experience marked a significant turning point for Lorre, who had endured a bitter public falling-out with Sheen before the actor’s departure. However, the two have since repaired their relationship.

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Lorre tells PEOPLE that he even sent Sheen pages from his memoir before publication and asked him to contribute a blurb. “I sent him the pages, and I asked him to write a blurb for the back of the book, which he did,” Lorre says.

“It’s the funniest damn thing,” he adds. “Look at the back of the book. The first blurb is Charlie’s, and it’s just hilarious. Only Charlie could have written it.”

Sheen’s endorsement reads: “When it comes to sitcoms (and as a general life rule), always bet on the guy not hammered on crack.”

Despite revisiting their difficult history in the book, Lorre insists there are no lingering hard feelings. “Our relationship is solid,” he says.

“I was able to tell the truth about how angry and hurt and bewildered I was during that whole passage of time,” Lorre continues. “But I also wrote, and I think it’s important to keep in mind, I also wrote that as time passed, all that anger and confusion and resentment, it all went away.”

The pair eventually reunited professionally when Sheen appeared as himself on Lorre’s comedy Bookie.

“And that’s when I reached out to see how he was doing and if he would be interested in playing himself as a degenerate gambler on Bookie,” Lorre recalls. “And he was absolutely gracious, and he said yes, and we had a blast.”

Sitcom is out now wherever books are sold.

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”