Two and a Half Men is over. Charlie Harper returned! But Charlie Sheen didn't. Executive producer and co-creator Chuck Lorre explained the controversial star's absence in the show's last ever vanity card at the end of the episode.
"I know a lot of you might be disappointed that you didn't get to see Charlie Sheen in tonight's finale," Lorre's card read. He then went on to explain the idea he had for Sheen's character, including jokes about the infamous rants Sheen made headlines with when he was fired from the show.
"We thought it was funny," Lorre wrote. "He didn't. Instead, he wanted us to write a heart-warming scene that would set up his return to primetime TV in a new sitcom called The Harpers starring him and Jon Cryer. We thought that was funny, too."
Sheen himself started rumors of his potential involvement in the series finale when the final season kicked into gear. Ashton Kutcher continued the discussion during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, but ultimately, it never happened.
"We tried to come up with an ending that would be fun for us and for Charlie and we wanted to provide closure for fans of the show. We were very well aware there was this desire to see him, but it didn't work out," Lorre told EW about the ending. "And what can you do?"
The Two and a Half Men finale featured appearances from John Stamos, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Christian Slater and several of Charlie's exes. It all ended with Lorre saying the final word: "Winning," another play on Sheen's series of interviews given after his time on Two and a Half Men came to an end.
Sheen took to Twitter last night to address his absence. "Attention World: If you're looking for my much anticipated cameo on network TV, you'll have to check out "The Goldbergs" Wed Feb. 25th on ABC! I go where the love is. c #OfCourseI'mNot"
Was the finale "Winning?" See how it ranks in among the best and worst series finales ever in the gallery below.