CBS and Warner Brothers made the announcement after Sheen, who was briefly hospitalized last month following his latest reported booze and drugs fueled partying mishap, denounced the show's co-creator Chuck Lorre.

"Based on the totality of Charlie Sheen's statements, conduct and condition, CBS and Warner Bros. Television have decided to discontinue production of 'Two and a Half Men' for the remainder of the season," they said in a statement.

Sheen, son of actor Martin Sheen, has become nonstop tabloid fodder with escapades allegedly involving hard drugs, heavy drinking, prostitutes and porn actresses.

He checked into rehab four weeks ago after being rushed to hospital with "severe abdominal pains" from a reported drug and booze fueled bender with five women at his Los Angeles home.

The emergency required suspending production on "Two and a Half Men" in which Sheen, 45, plays a hedonistic bachelor though it had been expected until the latest announcement that filming would resume in due course.

After the CBS/Warner Bros announcement, Sheen issued a colourfully worded open letter published by celebrity website TMZ, again attacking Lorre, this time calling him a "contaminated little maggot."

"I wish him nothing but pain in his silly travels, especially if they wind up in my octagon. Clearly, I have defeated this earthworm with my words imagine what I would have done with my fire breathing fists."

The star filed for divorce from his wife of two years in November, days after being taken to hospital following a reported drunken incident at a luxury New York hotel involving another porn star.

In addition to his reported substance abuse, Sheen had several run ins with the law in the 1990s in cases related to drugs, domestic violence and prostitution.