APPLE FALLS FAR

TV Legend Torches Sitcom Star for Quitting His Hit Show

Chuck Lorre said his star “left the show for mysterious reasons that were not mysterious to anyone on the show.”

Iconic TV creator Chuck Lorre has revealed he had major reservations about casting Anna Faris in his hit sitcom Mom—and believes his doubts were proven “correct.”

“I initially said no; I wasn’t sure Anna would be appropriate for this kind of material,” Lorre, 73, wrote in his new memoir, Sitcom.

In addition to Mom, Lorre created Emmy-winning sitcoms like The Big Bang Theory and Two and a Half Men. Mom ran from 2013 to 2021, and despite his initial refusal, Lorre ultimately cast Faris as Christy Plunkett, a single mother and recovering alcoholic who struggles with sobriety. She starred opposite Oscar-winner Allison Janney, 66, who played Christy’s no-longer-estranged mom, Bonnie, also a recovering alcoholic and substance abuser.

Though Lorre’s exact reason for doubting Faris, 49, is unclear, it may relate to Faris’ working relationship with actor Charlie Sheen, with whom Lorre has a turbulent past. Faris and Sheen, 61, co-starred in Scary Movie 3 (2003) and Scary Movie 4 (2006), and Faris has said she “loved working with him.”

Sheen’s Scary Movie stint overlapped with his starring in Two and a Half Men, which launched in 2003. As the show progressed, Sheen’s behavior grew erratic, and his struggles with addiction made the set a “nightmare,” Lorre wrote. CBS and Warner Bros. terminated Sheen in 2011 following his poor behavior, but Sheen blamed Lorre. The actor sued the writer in 2011 for $100 million; they settled privately.

Lorre said his “bungled” relationship with Sheen convinced him to give Faris a chance.

“Someone’s personal life is none of my business,” Lorre wrote, explaining his thought process. “The mom in Mom would be, and should be, Anna Faris.”

Still, Lorre wrote that he felt vindicated after the actress’ 2020 exit, ahead of Mom’s eighth and final season. He believes her departure proved his first instinct right.

“As the years went by, it became apparent that my initial reluctance to hire Anna was, in fact, correct,” he wrote. “After six years, she left the show for mysterious reasons that were not mysterious to anyone on the show.”

The Daily Beast has reached out to Faris for comment.

Lorre didn’t specify those reasons in the book. But Faris later confessed on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that the show’s intensity caused her to “lose focus.” She also said the only job she’d held for over three months was waitressing, so she was unprepared for the long-term commitment Mom presented.

When Faris announced her departure in 2020, she thanked Lorre and her castmates.

“The past seven years on Mom have been some of the most fulfilling and rewarding of my career,” she said in a statement to E! News at the time. “I’m so thankful to [Lorre], the writers, and my amazing castmates for creating a truly wonderful work experience. While my journey as Christy has come to an end, allowing me to pursue new opportunities, I’ll be watching next season and rooting for my TV family.”

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Dana Herrnstadt Editorial Intern, Obsessed

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