Angus T. Jones
Does anyone else wonder if Angus Jones..who plays Jake..on the popular TV series “Two and a half men” may be pulling the public’s leg with his comments this week that the show is filth and urged people not to watch? Or is the 19 year old, who has been on the series since its inception 9 years ago, sincere about his recent Christian conversion and willing to bite the hand that’s fed him millions? Here’s part of what he told an interviewer” “You cannot be a true God fearing person and be on a television show like that. I know I can’t. I’m not OK with what I’m learning, what the Bible says, and being on that show.” I certainly hope that this is not one big publicity stunt. The kid is right, of course, “Two and a half men” has always pushed the limits with an abundance of sexual innuendo that long ago went way past “innuendo” to “in your face.” Now, I’m no prude and, in fact, watched the show in the early years because Charley Sheen made me laugh and when he delivered his lines, it was kind of like Dean Martin used to be; more naughty than smutty. But I always cringed when so much of the suggestive dialogue took place in front of the little boy, Jake (Angus T. Jones) around the kitchen table ..or even worse, when the writers had Jake joining in the dubious conversations. I hope I’M not biting the hand that feeds me. After all CBS is my network. But it’s going to be interesting to observe the fall-out from this young actor’s strong statements about his own series. He’s already popular fodder for comedians, late night talk show hosts, pundits and bloggers.
UPDATE: Yup, that didn’t take long. Young Angus has already said he’s sorry for his tirade: “I apologize if my remarks reflect me showing indifference to and disrespect of my colleagues and a lack of appreciation of the extraordinary opportunity of which I have been blessed,” said Jones, who reportedly makes $350,000 an episode. “I never intended that.” He stopped short of actually retracting the things he said, though. I hope he sticks by his guns even though being a Christian in Hollywood is not unlike those early ones in Rome who were regular dinner guests at the Coliseum. Then, like now, the lions are always hungry. So far, there’s been no official comment from the producers and other actors on the show. But Charley Sheen..whose famous personal meltdown led to his firing from “Two and a half men” a couple seasons ago, told People magazine that Angus’ Hale-Bopp- like video makes it radically clear that the show is cursed.
I suppose it’s possible that since the series seems to be phasing-out Jake’s character anyway (probably because he’s not a precocious kid anymore) that might have something to do with Jones’ conversion and candid comments. Oh, the Hale Bopp reference Sheen mentioned? It was about the Heaven’s Gate religious cult, which committed mass suicide in 1997 because members believed death was the only way to gain access to an alien spaceship that was following the Hale-Bopp comet as it passed by Earth.
I certainly wish Angus T. Jones all the best and hope the Christian community will have his back and call for help if the young man goes shopping for a purple blanket and a new pair of sneakers.