Charlie Sheen’s Father, Martin, Says Son Was Using Steriods During His 2011 Meltdown

Since Charlie Sheen’s public meltdown in 2011, the actor’s father Martin Sheen has kept quiet about his son’s situation. Now, four years after, the elder Sheen spoke in a frank interview with Radio Times about how he truly felt about Charlie’s struggle with addiction.

Martin told the Radio Times that at that time, Charlie’s family felt powerless. They felt that they couldn’t do anything to help the actor deal with the struggles in his life. Instead, Martin said that all they could do for Charlie was “to pray for him and lift him up.”

The elder Sheen admitted that he did not get to see any of his son’s live performances but he emphasized that during Charlie’s meltdown, he tried to be as present as possible. However he pointed out, “you have to be aware of the circumstances. You have to be aware of many things that the public is not aware of.”

In the interview, Martin also revealed that Charlie took steroids after his public meltdown. Which is why the actor was fired from the television show Two and a Half Men. After being booted, Charlie then pursued a stand-up tour titled My Violent Torpedo of Truth/Defeat is Not an Option. That tour also proved to be a failure.

“He was in a very desperate situation. And he was doing what he felt would get him out of it – going public. And it was very painful. No less painful for him,” the actor’s father explained.

Of all the people in Charlie’s life, his father is perhaps the only person who can closely relate to what he went through as Martin also struggled with addiction in the past. Because of his heavy drinking in the past, he suffered a heart attack on the set of Apocalypse Now in 1977.

Eventually, Martin was able to overcome his weaknesses and his experience of being sober for almost 30 years helped him to understand his son better. “You can assure them you’re there and you love them, but you cannot effect change. That’s your ego, for the most part. You pray for a moment of clarity, you trust in a higher power and you never, ever give up hope. Because that is a measure of despair,” the elder Sheen said.

A year after Charlie’s meltdown, Martin joined him on Anger Management. The show was severely criticized but Martin was happy that he did the show with his son. He said that he “adores” his son and was delighted to work with Charlie.

[Image via YouTube]