Charlie Sheen: from Wall Street and Platoon to Two and a Half Men

Charlie Sheen: the filmography hiding behind Two and a Half Men

Few careers have been hijacked so brutally by a TV series. Charlie Sheen, the actor who smelled money in Wall Street and sweated in the jungle of Platoon, ended up fossilized in the collective memory as the chaotic lead of Two and a Half Men. Some argue that role brought him more luck than film talent. His filmography tells a different story, even if you have to dig for it.

The two major works nobody disputes

Platoon and Wall Street are heavyweight titles. In both, Sheen carries leading roles, playing characters caught between ambition and conscience. Films like that don't happen by accident. They belong on the résumé of any serious actor, and they tend to be forgotten when his career is judged as a whole.

The cult vein: from parody to car thriller

The most surprising part is the cinema that never makes the usual lists. Hot Shots — and its sequel — has earned cult status among fans of parody comedy. From science fiction comes The Arrival, a modest film by the director of the Riddick movies. And in the realm of B-movies, Terminal Velocity and The Wraith deliver action, tension and a car — a Dodge Pace Car — that some remember better than the actor himself. There are even those who rescue a story about an undercover sheriff, with bikers, supposedly based on true events.

The curious thing about Sheen's case is that between the prestige of Wall Street and the laughs of Hot Shots there are more decent films than his TV legend admits. Nobody claimed he was a profound actor. But the next time someone says he just got lucky, have them list it: the jungle, the trading floor, the cockpit of a parody and a Dodge Pace Car are not pure luck. They are a career.