Charlie Sheen's 'Today' interview: The rantings of a 'terribly ill' man
The increasingly unhinged actor takes to the airwaves to defend his erratic behavior, declaring that he's "a rock star from Mars"
The video: After "Two and a Half Men" star Charlie Sheen viciously criticized its creator Chuck Lorre, which led to the hit show's cancellation, Sheen isn't exactly engaged in silent meditation. Instead, he has dismissed speculation about his drug use and mental stability, granted interviews to various talk shows, and written an invective-laced letter to Lorre. On this morning's "Today," a ragged-looking Sheen fired off a volley of bizarre opinions (see video below), reiterating that he has cured his addictions with "the power of my mind," and noting that Alcoholics Anonymous is for "people who don't have tiger blood and Adonis DNA." He warned network executives that he will fight to earn his due, which he estimates at $3 million an episode, thanks to "psychological distress." He also mentioned in passing that he's "a rock star from Mars."
The reaction: Sheen isn't doing himself any favors, says Roger Catlin at The Hartford Courant, especially when he's "looking like a street-corner wildman seeking contributions for wine." Whatever his problems with drugs, alcohol, and morality, says Jamies Poniewozik at TIME, Sheen is above all "a poster boy for that most dangerous and common of celebrity intoxicants, entitlement." By rewarding him for playing up his party-boy lifestyle on television, Hollywood has allowed Sheen to escape responsibility until now — "even after abuse complaints, rampages and an assault plea — things that might get you fired if you were a normal person." Sheen is merely sad and "terribly ill," says Nancy Doyle Palmer at The Huffington Post. His rantings reveal "the desperate anger of a lost soul with only one choice left. Stop taking drugs or die." Watch Sheen on "Today":
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