Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen met back in 2000 while they were filing the movie Good Advice 200. One year later, when Richards appeared as a guest star on Sheen’s former sitcom Spin City, was when they really hit it off. And then, just one year after that, they got married in June 2002. However, in March 2005, after two kids, Richards filed for divorce.
The ex-couple shares two daughters, currently Sami, 17, and Lola, 16. And up until recently, Sheen was paying Richards child support for both of them. However, a recent court ruling stated that he no longer has to do that—and it completely blindsided Richards. In fact, the court date itself came out of the blue. She was out of town and couldn’t make it.
“Charlie filed two years ago and kept pushing the court date, so Denise was very surprised that it happened yesterday while she is out of town filming. She was blindsided,” one source told PEOPLE. “Now he’s manipulating the situation.”
“Lola does not live with Charlie. She lives with both of her parents and stays with Charlie when Denise is out of town. When Denise is back, Lola will be with her,” the source clarified. “This is very disappointing for Denise, but also not surprising. Charlie is pitting the girls against their mother, which is horrible.”
However, another source told PEOPLE that Richards “has known about the court date for six months.”
The ruling was a response to a TikTok video that Sami posted in May that she moved out of her mom’s and in with her father. She said in the video that she felt “trapped” at Richards’, using the words that she “finally moved out of the hell house, had a spiritual awakening.”
The source says that Richards was really upset by the whole thing and loves her daughter very much. “Denise loves Sami very much and Sami loves her. Denise is very saddened by the entire situation. She’s a mother who wants to protect her kids,” the source said. “They need structure and rules and Charlie is very permissive. Denise just wants the best for them.”
The source also explained that in any house there are rules, but Sami is a teenager and simply didn’t’ want to follow them. So of course, there are going to be consequences.
“She’s a mom and a parent and there are rules. [Sami] didn’t want to follow the rules,” the source said, adding, “Charlie didn’t support implementing Denise’s rules. He has a different way of parenting and Sami decided to live with her dad.”
Richards is now currently married to Aaron Phypers, and shares daughter Eloise Joni, 10, with him. Sheen also has three other children from other relationships: Cassandra, 36, and 12-year-old twin sons.
Do you think Sheen should have to stop paying child support?