Jon Cryer on Charlie Sheen and the end of ‘Two and a Half Men’

BURBANK, Calif. – Stage 26 is the key piece of real estate on what has become known as the “Chuck Lorre Corner” of the Warner Bros. Studio lot.

The surrounding soundstages are home to executive producer Lorre’s popular CBS sitcoms: “Two and a Half Men,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Mike & Molly” and “Mom.”

Back in January, Lorre and Warner’s television president Peter Roth unveiled a plaque renaming Studio 26 the “Two and a Half Men” studio. The sitcom ends with an hour-long series finale Thursday at 9 p.m. on CBS and CTV.

All of the current cast members were on hand, although only one of the original two and a half men — Jon Cryer — was there. As nerdy, needy Alan Harper, the 49-year-old actor saw the series through from beginning to end, unlike Charlie Sheen (who played randy brother Charlie) and Angus T. Jones (Alan’s son Jake).

Sheen, some may recall, had a noisy exit four seasons ago, lashing out at Lorre and ranting about “tiger blood” and “winning” before crash landing in rehab. Jones dismissed the sitcom as “filth” shortly before his now-grown-up character was unceremoniously shipped off to a war zone.

Surrounded by reporters on the familiar living room set, Cryer says he never thought he’d be the last man standing.

“The Angus thing threw me,” he said of Jones’s departure. The young actor left complaining the series went against his religious beliefs.

“Did not see that coming,” said Cryer. “The stuff with Charlie … that was different.”

How did Cryer get through those troubling transitions?

“I felt like the writers always kept the integrity of Alan’s character,” he said.

“As long as I was just showing up every week and just being Alan, it wasn’t that hard. The writers really did a lot more of the heavy lifting than I did.”

Cryer credits Ashton Kutcher, who took over from Sheen at the start of the ninth season as Internet billionaire Walden Schmidt, with making the past four seasons fun. Not to mention profitable — a supper hour staple, “Two and a Half Men” is one of the biggest success stories ever in syndication.

Kutcher was at the press party along with Holland Taylor (Alan’s oversexed mother Evelyn) and Conchata Ferrell (the sharp-tongued housekeeper Berta). There was speculation that Sheen — whose character was killed off at the start of season 9 — might have been at the dedication (he wasn’t) and might also be part of Thursday’s star-packed finale.

If Cryer knew, he was playing it coy.

“I would always like to see Charlie back, whether on the finale or in life,” he said.

“He was a great friend for eight-and-a-half years.”

More than anyone, however, Cryer is aware that you never know which Sheen is going to show up.

“I always hope the best for him,” he said. “I honestly don’t know if he’ll be on our last show, but it certainly won’t be because people here don’t love him.”

It was Cryer’s career that was in a slump when “Two and a Half Men” began. After making a name for himself in the mid-80s as “Ducky” in John Hughes’s “Pretty in Pink,” he tackled Broadway. Three tries at being a TV series lead led to three quick cancellations. Lorre had to cast Cryer over CBS’ objections.

Even Cryer used to jokingly refer to himself as “the show killer.” What made “Two and a Half Men” work, he feels, is that the show always gave viewers what they were expecting.

“It was an old school sex farce,” he said. “Charlie was gonna be Dean Martin, I was gonna be Jerry Lewis, and you might see some very pretty ladies.”

The actor has just put the finishing touches on his autobiography, titled, “So This Happened.”

“It’s a tell-most,” he said.

His “Two and a Half Men” experience is “a chunk of it,” but the book covers his 30 years in show business, including “being tangentially a part of the Brat Pack” — a group of actors such as Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Molly Ringwald, Sheen’s brother Emilio Estevez and others who came of age in Hughes films.

“It’s mostly about a lot of strange moments,” he said, “and I’ve had some strange ones in the business.”

— Bill Brioux is a freelance TV columnist based in Brampton, Ont.