When Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards' then-18-year-old daughter Sami Sheen joined OnlyFans, Charlie made it clear that he didn't approve by releasing a statement saying that he had been "unable to prevent it." The website, which was launched in 2016 but massively increased in popularity over the COVID lockdown, allows users to purchase subscriptions to the creators of their choice and is primarily used for the distribution of adult content. Sami was one of several public figures to become an OnlyFans creator but made even more headlines than others because of her age and her famous parents. Over a year later, she's still on OnlyFans and classifies her career as sex work. And in a new profile of Sami, Charlie revealed that he's come around to accepting his daughter's job and explained why.
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Sami joined OnlyFans in June 2022. Soon after, her father issued a statement to E! News, which read, "I do not condone this, but since I'm unable to prevent it, I urged her to keep it classy, creative and not sacrifice her integrity. She is 18 years old now and living with her mother. This did not occur under my roof."
Richards subsequently told People that Sami joining OnlyFans "wasn't based on whose house she lives in ... All I can do as a parent is guide her and trust her judgment, but she makes her own choices." The Real Housewives star soon joined OnlyFans herself.
"Once I learned that this platform is actually really empowering for the creators to be their true, authentic self, I decided to join it, too," Richards told E!'s Daily Pop. She also told E! News that the backlash Sami received for starting her account was unfair and compared it to negative comments she herself received for posing for Playboy and starring in the 1998 erotic thriller, Wild Things.
Charlie shared with E! last year that his ex helped him realize that he should be more supportive of Sami. He noted in another statement that she had "illuminated a variety of salient points, that in my haste, I overlooked and dismissed." He added, "Now more than ever, it's essential that Sami have a united parental front to rely upon, as she embarks on this new adventure. From this moment forward, she'll have it abundantly."
Both of Sami's parents opened up further about her OnlyFans career in a new profile of the 19-year-old for Bustle. Charlie explained why he was initially so upset and what changed his mind.
"I had a knee-jerk reaction to it because of the reputation that preceded it. I was just like, ‘Oh, this can only go bad,'" the 58-year-old actor said. "That flies in the face of my approach to things normally, but I think when your child is involved, it presents as just a whole different alternative set of circumstances. She’s doing this and it can only be a much more successful and pleasant experience with the support of myself, her mom, and others. I have to have confidence and just know in my heart that all of her virtues and all the wonderfulness that makes her, her, come with her. I believe her to be incorruptible."
Richards told the publication that she warned her daughter to "think twice about doing this because there’s a certain perception with it" when Sami joined OnlyFans and that she was initially worried about Sami receiving hate online. Of her own OnlyFans experience, she said, "When Wild Things came out, it was a very positive movie for my career, but I’m sure a lot of people had a personal opinion, too. Then after that, you’re perceived as a sex symbol, and the things you do are perceived [as] sexual.'" Richards chose to lean into her image. "So that’s why I wanted to join OnlyFans, because I was like, ‘Who cares?'," she added.
Sami told Bustle that using OnlyFans has made her feel more confident than ever, and she shared that now, her parents are more open with her about their own highly publicized lives.
"I’ve just started asking my parents random questions [about their past] and they’re now more honest with me," she said. "It’s really nice that they’re able to have an adult conversation with me, and we can just laugh about mistakes they’ve made or funny stories that I wasn’t aware of ... It’d be different if my parents were both lawyers, or a little bit more conservative. But they get it—so they can’t be mad!"
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