ABC/NBC/FOX: Give the people what they want. A Charlie Sheen sitcom where he's wild, single dad w/young kids trying to land next hot wife. 2 minutes ago
If another network grabbed Charlie Sheen and created show around him w/out Jon Cryer storyline baggage, would be bigger/crush "Two 1/2 Men." 5 minutes ago
MARKETING STRATEGY: CBS will still do very well with AKutcher, but will lose big base of male viewers who are cool with Charlie, NOT Ashton. 44 minutes ago
Replacing Charlie Sheen w Ashton Kuthcher is like replacing David Lee Roth w Sammy Hagar. Was still a $ success, but not NEARLY as good. 46 minutes ago
“UNTITLED CHARLIE SHEEN TELEVISION SITCOM” - (Working Title: “Next, Please!” or “Winning!”):
(If you call the character “Charlie” [because it will be impossible to have anyone think of him as anyone else/any other name, after historic media avalanche since his departure], it will position “Two and a Half Men,” as the outdated version, like Happy Days after Fonzie left the show And position, “Next, Please!” as the new, vital project/show (actual sequel, if you will.) The audience carries on with “Charlie” as CBS’ “Men” can try to re-build with Kuthcher’s base. Because clearly, “Men” will LOSE a lot of men (male viewers) with the replacement of Sheen for Kutcher. Guys are cool with Charlie, but Ashton doesn’t carry that “guy appeal” with a lot of guys. But Kutcher will be a good replacement. But he’s no Charlie Sheen in acting ability, or appeal. And Charlie is probably four times bigger, now, than he was, last season on “Men.”)
So what would be a show/vehicle for Sheen that is comfortable and similar to the format formula that already works: A Charlie Sheen sitcom where he's wild, single dad w/young kids trying to land next hot wife. [Why experiment with single camera, no-audience show. The best thing would have been for the show to carry on with Charlie. But CBS executives didn’t make that happen. People do not like different. They like familiar.]
So Charlie as a single, recently divorced dad, living in upscale community (Calabassas/Agoura Hills style), with two young kids (3 year old and a baby?); constantly trying to balance his playboy life in his quest to find his next wife (as opposed to next mom for his kids) with performing basis functions of single fatherhood, Charlie style. His only responsibility is he has to manage the family business, restaurant wi-fi cafe. part of the successful family operation, of which Charlie is the black sheep stuck running the family’s “chump” property -- and it seems like his dad only keeps the cafe to keep Charlie burdened with running it. And of course, the business is always getting in the way of his social life with his friends. And too many times, his personal life spills into his business life, at the cafe.
His ex-wife (Megan?) is part of the cast, as she is involved with sharing the kids. The ex-wife is very much part of the show as a main character. Usually, you have the wife being the smarter, wiser, more responsible parent. In this situation, she’s less stable than Charlie, as she is more focused on her acting career than her kids, and she’s always trying to dump the kids on him, as much as he is trying to bounce them back to her. And at the end of the day, Charlie knows that she’s crazy and he’s the more stable, reliable one, anyway. But he’s just a little better than her.
Charlie’s mom has to pitch in to raise the kids and he’s always having her come over to babysit so he can go out and party. Not the usual smarter, in control, wise-cracking mom. More of an older mom, who is burnt out, and can barely handle the young kids. She can barely care for the infant and the three year old can already get the best of her. Grandma is the one trying to keep, “her bads” from being discovered by others, instead of the usual, ‘trying to keep the mom from finding out.” Charlie isn’t scared of his mom. She holds no power over him cause he’s got his trust fund that was set up by his dad. (His mom and dad are divorced. His dad, also a playboy and the mom/grandma is PLENTY bitter over how her ex-husband/Charlie’s dad is out gallivanting all the time with younger women.)
And Charlie has his couple of homies (posse) that he hangs with and gets in crisis situations with and they have to pitch in to help with the kids, too. And of course, all kinds of inappropriate and hilarious situations ensue.
CHARLIE: The REAL Charlie Sheen is from Malibu. Here would be some Malibu qualities: First of all, he has a trust fund account from his parents, who loath him, but in his kind of upscale family, even Charlie doesn’t get cut off, although he gets less money than his sister. He sometimes can get into a financial bind, but next month, he’s always bailed out again, when the next check is direct deposited. He would be FINE if he didn’t blow thousands at night clubs, parties and on dumb/impulsive stuff.
Surfing is very important. (You don’t see it, but they talk about it all the time and can be at bars/restaurants geared toward surf/beach crowd.) All his friends surf...the only "current event" they truly relate to are, “waves.” His friends are also rich, spoiled, bad-boys, like Charlie, with rich parents and nice cars and lots of money. Obnoxious and knuckleheads, but not broke and downscale.
The conflicts/putting Charlie in check comes from his lawyer/accountant who is constantly trying to keep him out of legal hot water and from blowing all his money and from his dad, who although is also a playboy, always tries to thwart Charlie’s good times, cause his dad resents the fact that he earned it the hard way, and Charlie walked into his fortune and doesn’t appreciate the value of money or the finer things in life. (Charlie may be wealthy, but doesn’t appreciate fine culture and snobby, rich, upscale, boring stuff like his dad does.)
And finally...why, "Next, Please!"? No matter HOW PERFECT the woman he dates, that episode happens to be for him, she's never "right enough" for him. ( HE'S CRAZY!!! THESE WOMEN ARE PERFECT FOR HIM!!!) So at the end, it's always, "Next, Please!"
STORY IDEA: (More to come...)
