Denise Richard Wants To Mend Her 'Strained' Relationship With Estranged Daughter

May 13, 2022 by apost team

Actors Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen are both well known in their own right, so when they got together in the early 2000s, they instantly became one of Hollywood's most-talked-about couples. Richards was best known for playing a Bond girl in "The World Is Not Enough," as well as her roles in the cult movies "Starship Troopers," "Wild Things," and "Drop Dead Gorgeous" among others. 

Meanwhile, Charlie has Hollywood royalty in his blood. The son of legendary actor Martin Sheen, he's also the brother of Emilio Estévez, while their other siblings have also followed the family tradition of working in show business. Charlie has been appearing in movies since the mid-'80s, but it's his television work on shows like "Spin City" and "Two and a Half Men" that he is most known for. 

When this gorgeous couple met in 2000 on the set of the film "Good Advice," sparks flew. They were married by 2002 and babies soon followed. The couple has two daughters, Sami and Lola, and Sami, the older of the two is growing up to be drop-dead gorgeous just like her parents.

Now 19, Sami is nearly an adult, and like many Gen Z kids, is choosing to live her life prominently on social media. She even has a few acting credits to her name and appears to already be represented by a talent management company. When your parents are as famous and successful as hers, it only makes sense to follow them in the work that they've done.

However, Sami has been going through difficulties with her mother and has made her explosive claims known on social media. Her post from October 2021 sheds light on the family dynamics. 

Denise Richards was born in Downers Grove, Illinois, on February 17, 1971, before her family moved to Oceanside, California when she was 15 years old. Upon graduating from high school in 1989, Richards was voted best looking in her yearbook, hinting at the glamorous career she would go on to have as a model and actress.

Initially, she worked as a model, traveling to New York, Paris, and Tokyo, but soon enough she branched out into acting. Her first roles were guest spots on television shows including "Saved By the Bell," "Married... with Children," and "Beverly Hills, 90210." She continued playing small parts in television and movies before she landed her first starring role in 1997's "Starship Troopers." The following years in the late '90s put Richards firmly on the map, as she appeared in "Wild Things," "Drop Dead Gorgeous," and "The World Is Not Enough," where she played a Bond girl. She continued working in Hollywood and began to switch between movies and TV work, appearing in "Friends," "Spin City," "Scary Movie 3," "Love Actually," "Two and a Half Men," and "30 Rock."

Then in 2008, Richards landed her own E! reality series titled "Denise Richards: It's Complicated." The show followed her life, as well as her young daughters, in Los Angeles. This switch to reality television set the tone for her appearance on Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," on which she appeared for a few seasons. Still acting today, Richards has shown that she's not just a pretty face and has worked hard for her career.

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In contrast to Richards' upbringing, Charlie Sheen was born into a family of Hollywood stars. The actor's real name is Carlos Estévez and if his last name rings a bell that's because his father is Ramón Gerardo Antonio Estévez, who is better known as Martin Sheen. The legendary actor is his father, and Emilio Estévez is Charlie's brother. So why do they all go by different names? Ramón AKA Martin has said that sometimes he regrets his decision to go by a different name, but getting work in Hollywood with Latino surnames was a gamble at the time. Charlie's grandparents immigrated from the Galician region of Spain to New York, and there is some Irish blood in his family as well.

Having a famous actor as a father meant that Charlie got his start early — his first film role was in his dad's movie "The Execution of Private Slovik" in 1974 when he was just 9 years old. He went to Santa Monica High School and like a Hollywood fever dream, his friends included Robert Downey Jr., Rob Lowe, Sean Penn, and his brother Emilio, who would all make amateur Super 8 films together.

Charlie seriously began his career at the age of 18, appearing in movies such as "Red Dawn," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," and "Platoon" in the early years of his career. He also appeared in his father's movie "Wall Street" and continued to make a name for himself. By 1994, Charlie was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Despite his early successes, it was later in his career that Charlie really became a household name. In 2000 he replaced beloved actor Michael J. Fox in the last two seasons of "Spin City," earning himself his only Golden Globe Award. Soon after Charlie was cast in "Two and a Half Men," in which his character Charlie Harper was loosely based on his own bad-boy image. The show was an immense success and earned Charlie Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. By his eighth and final season on "Two and a Half Men," Charlie was earning $1.8 million per episode. 

It was during this period of his career that the actor met Richards and the two became one of Hollywood's hottest couples. After appearing in the 2000 movie "Good Advice" together, Richards went on to guest star on Charlie's show "Spin City" in 2001, which is when they began dating. The couple became engaged just a few months later in December 2001, before marrying the following June at "Spin City" creator Gary David Goldberg's estate. 

In just a few years the couple would have two beautiful daughters — Sami Sheen, who was born in March 2004, and Lola Sheen, who was born in 2005. But despite seeming like the picture of happiness from the outside, their relationship began to crack and it seems it was mostly due to Charlie's hard-partying ways, something he was known for since his youth. In an episode of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," as reported by Today, Richards opened up about the breakdown of her marriage, saying that it changed "rapidly" around the time she got pregnant with Lola. 

In the episode, Richards recalled:

"A lot of people have an impression of me being wild and crazy, but Charlie was sober when we got married, so we were not this swinging couple that people might assume."

She went on to discuss when she got pregnant with Lola:

"It was a very dark time and very toxic, and I filed for divorce when I was six months pregnant with her."

Richards filed for divorce in March 2005 and it was finalized by November 2006. In the following years, Charlie's private problems became public, leading to a huge fall from grace. After struggling with substance abuse throughout his career, Charlie had failed attempts in rehab and ultimately was fired from his show "Two and a Half Men" in a highly publicized battle with the studio. The fallout from the incident led to the actor giving bizarre interviews as he continued to spiral downward. 

While at the time he was portraying an image that suggested he was "sticking it to the man," the actor recently came clean about regretting how everything went down. Speaking with Yahoo! Entertainment, he said how people thought it was "so cool" and "fun to watch" him "stick it to the man," but Charlie now recalls:

"My thought behind that is, 'Oh, yeah, great. I'm so glad that I traded early retirement for a f***ing hashtag.'"

He spoke of taking "absolute ownership" of his "desperately juvenile" behavior from that time and has discussed how things could have been different had someone reached out and asked how they could help when he was clearly suffering from poor mental health.

Undoubtedly, one of the reasons Charlie has cleaned up his act is to be there for his children. After breaking off an engagement in 2014, he told PEOPLE:

“I’ve decided that my children deserve my focus more than a relationship does right now."

Charlie has five children to three different women in total, but his and Richards' eldest daughter Sami is growing up to be one of the prettiest girls we've seen. Now 19, Sami is is a typical Gen Z teen who is creating an identity for herself. 

After opening up about her failed marriage on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," as reported by Today, Richards talked about how she was "really struggling with parenting right now with [her] teenagers." When Sami dyed her gorgeous blond hair pink without asking for permission first, Richards revealed:

"Sami, I think, sometimes she does things hoping to get a reaction out of me ... It's not easy."

While Richards has painted a picture of familial harmony and love in the media, there have been reports that something more sinister brewing underneath. In October 2021, PEOPLE reported that a judge ruled that SHeen no longer had to pay any child support to Richards after Sami made explosive claims about living in a "hell house" under Richards. 

In 2021, Page Six published TikTok posts that Sami reportedly published on her profile.

In it, Sami explained that just one year prior, she was "trapped in an abusive household [and] hated myself," claiming that she "would go days without eating or sleeping, insanely depressed, hated school, etc…."

She reportedly then stated, "Now, finally moved out of the hell house, had a spiritual awakening, own 2 cats, happy single, full of self love, and dropped out of high school :)"

The posts are no longer visible as they have been made private. Sami moved away from Richards and permanently lives with Sheen, while Lola splits her time between her father's and mother's house according to PEOPLE. 

A source revealed to PEOPLE that "Denise loves Sami very much and Sami loves her. Denise is very saddened by the entire situation," and added, "She's a mother who wants to protect her kids. They need structure and rules and Charlie is very permissive. Denise just wants the best for them." 

It's kind of expected that teenage daughters will cause their parents strife, but at the end of the day, Sami is still their daughter who they love. For her 17th birthday, Richards shared a gorgeous picture of Sami wearing a bright pink sweatshirt to her Instagram, captioning the post with a heartfelt message:

"Can’t believe my beautiful baby girl is 17!!!! Time flies by so fast, so amazed the beautiful young woman you’ve become. Although a part of me would give anything to have those years back when you were little. I cherish those precious moments. I love you so much Sami girl. I’m so proud of you. You’re beyond beautiful inside and out and so compassionate. I love you my Sami💕 Happy Birthday 🎂"

Hello! Magazine reported that Richards opened up about her troubled relationship with her daughter in February 2022. Richards said that currently, "Honestly, I have a strained relationship with her. It's very difficult. I know we'll get back to where we were eventually but right now, it is strained."

In May 2022, it looked like Richards and Sami were on a better path. The mother-daughter duo reunited for Mother's Day and had only praise for each other. In her Instagram post, Sami wrote, "happy mother’s day !! i love u so much mom. u have no idea how grateful i am to have u in my life 💗💐🥂"

Richards commented on her daughter's post, "Thank you Sami for an amazing Mother’s Day. It means a lot to me. I know nana was at dinner with us she would never miss one of her favorite restaurants. 🙏🏻 Thank you & I love you so much❤️" 

Though Sami and Richards are going through a very difficult time in their relationship, it looks like both of them are making an effort to include space and love for each other in their lives. 

Despite having been broken up for 15 years now, Richards and Charlie are still in each others' lives and Sami's 17th birthday with dinner altogether. Sami shared a photo of her mom, dad, sister, and herself via Instagram Stories, which shows the four of them smiling widely and clearly enjoying each others' company. 

Despite Richards and Sheen's fallout, Richards makes sure that he continues to be a presence in their kids' lives. She told PEOPLE,

"Whatever is going on with a couple, the children should not be privy to it. Obviously, there are times when emotions might flare up. But we’re human beings, and we make mistakes. I know that when someone is struggling with addiction, sometimes choices are made that are not in the best judgment, and I have empathy for that. I want Charlie to be the best person and father he can be."

That's an incredibly empathetic approach and certainly not one that many others in Hollywood take to heart. 

Did you know Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards had two daughters? Who do you think Sami Sheen looks more like, her mom or dad? If you found this article interesting, then be sure to pass it on to those you know!