Anna Faris responds after producer Chuck Lorre shares ‘hurtful’ comments about her exit from TV series Mom
US actress and comedian Anna Faris has said she was “hurt” by comments made by producer Chuck Lorre about her departure from their sitcom Mom.
Lorre, the creator of some of TV’s biggest hits including The Big Bang Theory, revealed in his memoir he initially had reservations about casting Faris in the series.
He also reflected on her departure after seven seasons, making comments that appear to allude to her struggles with alcohol addiction.
Faris has spoken openly in the past about her relationship with alcohol. In August, the actress revealed she had taken a step back and was attempting to get sober.
She starred as Christy Plunkett, a single mother battling drug abuse and alcohol addiction, in Mom from 2013 to 2020. Faris left the CBS sitcom ahead of its eighth and final season.
In his book, Lorre, 73, writes he was initially unsure whether Faris was right for the role but reconsidered after reflecting on his troubled working relationship with actor Charlie Sheen on Two And A Half Men.
Sheen and Lorre co-created the hit sitcom, but their relationship deteriorated in a high-profile feud. Sheen’s struggles with drug and alcohol addiction contributed to the breakdown and he was subsequently fired from the show.
Sheen responded by filing a $100 million wrongful termination lawsuit against Lorre and the studio. The dispute was eventually settled in September 2011.
“I wasn’t sure Anna would be appropriate for this kind of material,” Lorre writes in his memoir.
“Then I thought about how badly I’d bungled my working relationship with Charlie Sheen.”
Reflecting on that experience, Lorre says he decided Faris’ personal life should not influence his casting decision.
Faris went on to star alongside Allison Janney, who played her on-screen mother, Bonnie Plunkett, for seven seasons.
“As the years went by, it became apparent that my initial reluctance to hire Anna was, in fact, correct,” he writes.
“After six years, she left the show for mysterious reasons that were not mysterious to anyone on the show.”
5News aggregated this summary from the outlet’s public feed. The full article, with all the context, is on 7news.com.au — the content belongs to 7NEWS Australia.