Whatever Happened To Angus T. Jones From Two And A Half Men?

The glory years of "Two and a Half Men" featured the trio of Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer, and Angus T. Jones chuckling it up on screen. Jones played the "half man" part of the sitcom's title, starring as Jake Harper — the young son of Alan (Cryer) and nephew to Charlie (Sheen). In the show's earlier seasons, Jake drives his father up the wall by refusing to do his homework and embracing all of his uncle's bad habits. He's no piece of cake for Charlie, either, as Jake plays the main riff of Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" on loop, constantly clogs up the toilet, and interrupts several of Charlie's one-night stands at the infamous Malibu beachside home.

After Sheen's departure from the show, Jones stuck around for a while before also taking his leave of absence as a main cast member on Season 10, only returning for a guest spot in the series finale. When fans look at what the cast of "Two and a Half Men" is doing today, Jones' name often comes up for conversation, as he hasn't stayed in the limelight nor continued to build on the goodwill accumulated as a child star on the popular sitcom. If someone didn't know any better, it appears like he has vanished off the face of the Earth.

The good news is Jones is still around and living life the way he deems fit. So, let's take a look at what happened to Jones after "Two and a Half Men," and what he's up to nowadays.

The firing of Charlie Sheen from "Two and a Half Men" shook up the show. The cast and crew might have thought the worst was behind them as they charged on ahead with Ashton Kutcher, who slotted in as the brand-new character Walden Schmidt. However, trouble struck once more in November 2012, when Angus T. Jones provided a testimony to the religious group Forerunner Chronicles' YouTube channel. In the video, Jones railed against "Two and a Half Men" and admitted he didn't want to be on the show anymore, urging viewers to switch channels too.

"Jake from 'Two and a Half Men' means nothing," Jones said. "He is a non-existent character. If you watch 'Two and a Half Men,' please stop watching 'Two and a Half Men.' I'm on 'Two and a Half Men' and I don't want to be on it. Please stop watching it. Please stop filling your head with filth."

A day after the video went live, Jones apologized for his controversial remarks, even thanking the show's creator Chuck Lorre and the network for the chance to appear on the sitcom. However, Jones quietly disappeared from "Two and a Half Men" after this incident, leaving at the end of Season 10. Jake Harper isn't killed off in the storyline, though. Instead, Jake travels to Japan for a new adventure. He is occasionally referenced and mentioned by other characters thereafter.

By the time Angus T. Jones decided to leave "Two and a Half Men," his mind had been made up for a while — and not only because of his religious beliefs influencing his choice. In 2012, Jones turned 19 years old and was ready to move on to the next phase of his life: college.

"Going to college was something I was really, really excited about," Jones told People in 2016. The actor enrolled at the University of Colorado, where he majored in environmental studies. A year later, he changed his major to Jewish studies. However, Jones didn't finish his first stint at college. He told the publication that he paused his studies to head back to Los Angeles, even though he still had the intention to return and complete his degree. In the same conversation, he disclosed that he was also open to resuming his acting career.

Discussing his college experience, Jones spoke positively about his decision to enroll at a university in a place like Boulder, Colorado, since it afforded him "a normal existence." He added: "I wasn't the center of everyone's attention, and that was nice."

The ending of "Two and a Half Men" aims to tie up a number of loose ends from the series. While Charlie Sheen didn't reprise his role as Charlie Harper, Angus T. Jones guest stars as Jake one last time. Jones' cameo serves as a just and pleasant send-off to the fan-favorite character — a final goodbye for everyone, so to speak.

However, anyone who had followed Jones shouldn't have been all too surprised to see his return as Jake. In March 2014, Jones spoke to KHOU, where he further elaborated about his departure from "Two and a Half Men." He said: "It was difficult for me to be on the show and be part of something that was making light of topics in our world where there are really problems for a lot of people. I was a paid hypocrite because I wasn't okay with it and I was still doing it."

That being said, Jones expressed remorse for how he handled his public denouncement of the show, especially because of the impact it had on Chuck Lorre. He added: "That's like his baby and I just totally insulted his baby and to that degree I am apologetic but otherwise I don't regret saying what I said." Unlike Sheen, Jones apologized and tried to make amends with Lorre while the sitcom was still on air, so the door was open for his inevitable return and last hurrah as Jake.

Angus T. Jones remained frank about how he struggled to reconcile his faith with the raunchy and boundary pushing story arcs of "Two and a Half Men." In fact, he was more than willing to leave Hollywood totally behind him because of his newfound beliefs. In 2016, Jones admitted his mindset shifted both toward acting and aspects of his faith. "I got pretty doomsday with my thinking for a long time, but now I'm having fun and enjoying where I'm at," Jones said. "I no longer feel like every step I take is on a landmine."

Jones told People that he embarked on a spiritual journey of sorts, but he had reached a new point of discovery in which he was more comfortable. "Over the last three years I've been involved with various faith-based organizations," he said. "Right now, I'm stepping away from the organizational business-model programs. I'm interested in seeing where I go without an organization putting a stamp of approval on if I'm good or bad or whatever." That said, Jones didn't express any regrets about his decision to leave "Two and a Half Men" or the entertainment business when he did.

Angus T. Jones hit the headlines in 2016, when news broke that he would be teaming up with Diddy's son Justin Combs and Kene Orjioke to run an experience-based live events company known as Tonite. Jones' position was announced as president of entertainment. As it turns out, Jones' family has a history in the live entertainment sector, since his father owned an equipment rental company that serviced various events and shows. Jones used to tag along with his father to the venues, so the interest in this space didn't come out of left field for him.

In an interview with Billboard, Jones discussed how he came to be involved in this specific venture with Combs and Orjioke. "A friend of mine from the University in Boulder at Colorado named Sherrard [Harrington] introduced me to Kene," Jones said. "Justin and I met three years ago and we became friends. I came out to California and got to hang out and get to know the whole idea."

They appeared to be all in on this company, with even Combs roping in his father to help promote a Halloween event known as "The Purge" in 2016. However, the current status of Tonite is unknown, as the website is no longer available. It remains undetermined if this has anything to do with the ongoing case against Combs' father, Diddy, who happens to be embroiled in one of Hollywood's biggest scandals of the last 10 years.

While on "Two and a Half Men," Angus T. Jones found the time to appear on shows such as "Hannah Montana" and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." However, his career post-Jake Harper hasn't been overflowing with roles and a burgeoning filmography, even after he announced his intention to step back into acting. In fact, his first IMDb credit after "Two and a Half Men" is on Louis C.K.'s 2016 self-financed web series "Horace and Pete," where he played the part of Horace the 9th on one episode.

Appearing on the podcast "WTF with Marc Maron" (via The Wrap) in 2016, C.K. explained how he found Jones leaving "Two and a Half Men" because of his moral objections to be fascinating, and it helped to inform the Horace character. C.K. said: "I said [to Jones], 'I want you to play a guy in a world that's very amoral but you're not. In your mind, you're moral.' And we talked about the idea that when you make yourself moral, you separate yourself from other people. Because most people aren't. So you isolate yourself. And he came and he played that part."

Louis C.K. mulled over a "Horace and Pete" Season 2, stating it could happen with Jones returning as Horace and building upon the established story. However, C.K. mentioned these plans before he faced a series of sexual misconduct allegations in 2017 that derailed his career for many years.

After Angus T. Jones publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with "Two and a Half Men" and how it conflicted with his religious beliefs, his mother, Karey Jones, spoke out about her concerns. Speaking to MailOnline about her son in 2012, all that Karey said was: "I'm concerned he's being exploited by the church."

Of course, Angus stepped back from faith-based organizations, as he announced in 2016; however, it appears as if he never had an issue with his mother over her comments and concern for him. Karey's Instagram features many pictures with her, Angus, and her younger son Otto. In 2016, the trio attended a forest wedding and posted a few pictures together. They have also gone on regular outings and trips as a family, judging by her feed.

On Mother's Day in 2019, Karey posted a picture of her holding a gun, alongside Angus and Otto. The caption read: "Everyday [sic] is Mother's Day when you have two awesome boys like these!" According to the hashtags, they were all in Texas, and Angus and Otto were teaching her how to shoot.

In "Two and a Half Men," Jake Harper demonstrated his love for music by picking up a guitar, turning the amp's volume up to 11, and jamming in his room at his uncle Charlie's house. Unfortunately, he seemed confined to only being able to play the same chords from the opening riff of Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water." It seems as if Jake's passion for creating music is something Angus T. Jones shares in common with his character, though they might not be fans of the same genre.

On his official Instagram account, Jones shared a variety of creatively inclined photos featuring all kinds of musical imagery. Then, in March 2020, he shared a post featuring a picture of a bug with the caption: "I do music now, go head [sic] and get used to it loves."

Jones, his brother Otto, Henry Simonson, and John Buckak dropped a single on all the major music streaming platforms called "Burger 25" under the name of Bunk Boys. The hip-hop track is just under three and a half minutes in length, and it remains uncertain if this was released as a gag or with the intent to start something serious, because it's something alright — that's for sure. At the time of writing, the Bunk Boys haven't released another track since "Burger 25." Maybe there's a collab with Drake or Kendrick Lamar on the horizon — or maybe not.

Charlie Sheen and Chuck Lorre fixed their bitter feud after "Two and a Half Men" and worked together again on the 2023 comedy series "Bookie," which Lorre co-created with Nick Bakay. In the show's 1st season, Sheen plays a fictionalized version of himself who hosts a poker game at a rehabilitation facility. If the people around the table look familiar, they should be, since they also featured in the famous poker scene from the pilot episode of "Two and a Half Men."

Lorre revealed to Variety that once he and Sheen decided to pay tribute to their old sitcom in this scene, they knew they had to get Angus T. Jones involved as well. According to Lorre, Jones was more than up for it. "He's a terrific guy," Lorre said of Jones. "It's an extraordinary thing. We started working together, he was 8 years old. He's a little boy, right? With just uncanny comedic instincts, without thinking. It was just in his DNA. And to work together again, 20 years later, we had fun. It was a wonderful afternoon. Everybody had the same reaction: 'Oh my God. You're a grown man!'"

Sheen, Lorre, and Jones' reunion got tongues wagging about a possible reunion or continuation of "Two and a Half Men," especially since everyone appears to be on better terms these days. Lorre, though, was hesitant to commit to anything, stating he was just happy to have a chance to reconnect with Sheen all these years later.

"Two and a Half Men" established itself as one of the most popular sitcoms of its era. Resultantly, the cast received hefty paychecks to keep the laughs flowing — including Angus T. Jones. Before 2010, the actor was on a $250,000 per episode deal, becoming the highest-paid child star at the time. He left the Sprouse twins in his dust, as they only secured $20,000 per episode of "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody." Well, they should have hired a better agent to get them more of that Disney cheddar.

For Jones' last contract on "Two and a Half Men," which he received at the age of 16, he made a reported $300,000 per episode and a $500,000 signing bonus. Taking into account his last two seasons on the show consisted of 47 episodes, Jones walked away with over $14 million in his pocket — before the IRS came knocking, of course.

Jones never made headlines for being a splashy spender or throwing extravagant parties. He appeared to choose a simple lifestyle over the glitz and glamor of Hollywood. So, unless he bought each of his pals a brand-new Ferrari, he should have enough cash in the bank to last him a few lifetimes. Maybe that's why he isn't rushing to appear in absolutely everything nowadays.

Want to learn more about the Harper family and their infinite shenanigans? Check out the entire "Two and a Half Men" story finally explained.