Charlie Sheen opens up about cocaine era, extortion and HIV in Australian 60 Minutes interview

Charlie Sheen’s appearance on Australia’s edition of 60 Minutes on Sunday delivered striking revelations from a life lived in the glare of the public eye. The actor spoke with reporter Amelia Adams about the depths of his former drug use, including cocaine habits that he says once led to a dramatic confrontation with a Mexican cartel. Adams pressed him on the tell-tale details, and the exchange underscored how the star’s highs and lows have followed him long after the peak of his fame.

“The cartel cut you off?” Adams asked during the interview, prompting a stark admission from Sheen: “They did, they did.” He described a period when his cocaine consumption was so heavy that the cartel, which distributed large quantities, assumed he was supplying drugs himself. “They had never seen someone acquiring that kind of weight. The only other people that they were delivering that kind of weight to, were dealers,” Sheen said, adding that he was told to “lay low” by those who controlled the supply chain. The conversation also touched on the scale of his use, with Adams asking if he was “ smoking seven-gram rocks of crack cocaine.” Sheen’s response was blunt and darkly humorous: “Well, we never took one out and put it on a scale. But that was the amount that was cooked to get it into that form.” He recalled joking at the time, telling Adams, “We’re going to need a bigger pipe,” before laughing at the image.

The interview moved beyond the drug years to broader disclosures about his personal history that he has documented elsewhere. Sheen discussed revelations from his book and Netflix documentary in which he describes past sexual experiences with men. He attributed parts of that disclosure to being blackmailed and said his public statements were aimed at removing the power of extortion that had loomed over him. “You no longer have any control over me with your extortion demands,” he said, framing the disclosures as a step toward reclaiming agency over his story. He described the decision to speak out as a necessary move, noting that revealing those experiences represented “an off-label benefit” of confronting the pressures he faced.

The conversation also addressed his HIV status, which he publicly disclosed in 2015. He described that decision as liberating, saying he wanted to be free of the burden of secrecy and to see how people would react once he spoke openly about his health. He repeated a sentiment he has shared publicly before: the moment of truth provided relief and a sense of catharsis, rather than an attempt to cast himself as a victim. In official materials promoting his projects, he has framed the revelations as part of a broader effort to tell his life without censorship.

Beyond his confessional moments, the interview touched on the arc of Sheen’s career. Born Carlos Irwin Estévez, he is the son of Emmy-winner Martin Sheen and began acting in smaller roles in his father’s films before breaking through in the 1980s. His breakthrough came with Platoon in 1986, followed by Red Dawn and Wall Street. The star became a household name for the long-running TV hit Two and a Half Men, although he was fired from the show in 2011 amid well-documented off-screen turmoil and erratic behavior tied to his drug use. Today, Sheen emphasizes a quieter pace in his personal life and career, focusing on family and a slate of new projects.

Sheen has five children, including daughters Sami and Lola with ex-wife Denise Richards, and twins Bob and Max from his marriage to Brook Mueller. He also has a long history with Richards as a public figure, including appearances at events connected to his work and his documentaries. In a broader biographical arc, he has described his life in interviews and in written works as a journey that oscillated between reckless years and a deliberate effort to rebuild.

In recent years, Sheen has promoted two major projects that expand on his life: a Netflix docuseries titled Aka Charlie Sheen and a companion book, The Book of Sheen, released around the same period. The docuseries premiered in mid-September, with the book issued shortly before, marking a coordinated effort to present a comprehensive, unvarnished account of his experiences. The star has said he does not wish to be seen as a victim in telling his story; rather, he aims to offer a transparent portrait of a complicated life, the lessons learned, and the choices that followed.

In interviews and public appearances, Sheen has repeatedly described his sobriety as eight years of maintained abstinence. He has said that his decision to change was driven in part by his desire to repair relationships with his children and to find a more stable, low-profile life. He has spoken about making amends to those he hurt along the way and has framed his current period of life as fundamentally different from the wild, high-profile years that defined his early and mid-career.

As he moves forward, Sheen’s public narrative continues to blend entertainment, personal history, and a candid reckoning with the past. His current projects, including Aka Charlie Sheen and related media, are part of an ongoing effort to reframe his public image around accountability, resilience and a quieter pace. The Australian interview adds another layer to a long-running, high-stakes media story about a performer who has lived at the center of fame and controversy for decades, and who now seeks to chart a steadier course through a life he once could not control.