Charlie Sheen DESTROYS Joy Behar Live On Air — She Walks Off The View!

What happens when the wild card of Hollywood’s most fear-driven sector collides with the queen of daytime’s most outspoken and assertive personality.

It became a full-blown live television clash that rapidly melted into sheer unadulterated chaos. Before the show’s recording was terminated accusations were slung like shrapnel emotions went boiling and the atmosphere in the studio became a lot more volatile than anyone could have possibly anticipated.

According to this account the situation grew so overwhelming that Joy Behar was ultimately forced to flee from the live show and abandon her own program and desk entirely.

Charlie Sheen ultimately turned the discussion on his terms by challenging Joy’s character in front of millions.

But after this point something happened that truly changes the game. It all started with what was shaping up to be a completely run-of-the-mill Tuesday morning.

The producers at the New York studio home to The View set genuinely thought they were booking a standard publicity event for Charlie Sheen’s latest film project.

Joy Behar however had a reputation for taking no prisoners in interviews particularly with controversial guests and she had been anticipating this day.

Her team believed they were well prepared for an onslaught of questions concerning his tumultuous history his sensationalized remarks and the numerous controversies that had swirled around him throughout Hollywood.

From their perspective this should have been a tight ship. The only problem was that Charlie was prepared just as much as Joy.

In fact he’d been doing his research into Joy’s past television history including her public debates and past statements.

He knew the conversation was likely to get uncomfortable. He was ready for the confrontational exchange and didn’t intend to play nice.

Unfortunately Joy had no idea what was in store for her on live television that morning.

When the broadcast kicked off Joy greeted him with a seemingly sweet smile welcoming him to set with pleasant remarks about his extensive career in television carefully hinting that the road to the top had been far from a smooth ride.

Charlie offered back the grin that audiences had come to know so well and leaned back.

Then after a brief pause and with impeccable timing Charlie looked straight at Joy and quipped that her journey in television probably could be summed up the same way only he said it more offensively.

Sheen claimed that Joy’s television career has been built upon a foundation of hypocrisy. That statement alone turned the tables.

Whoopi visibly shifted in her chair sensing the impending storm. Sarah shifted in her chair.

Joy however remained resolute. In response Joy retorted back saying it is remarkable for someone who over the last years has engaged in quite a bit of that regarding women and about their lives.

Your personal life has made it a little hard for us frankly. Charlie’s familiar smirk vanished though his calm was intact.

He retorted with a change in tone that only those who’ve watched The View for a long time recognized as he began to set the stage for the upcoming showdown saying oh we want to talk about remarks about women now.

Is that what we’re doing. You made remarks about women Republican women conservative women and then things took an extremely interesting and completely unpredictable turn.

A fleeting flash of anger marred Joy’s features the color in her cheeks deepened slightly but she didn’t back down an inch.

Those remarks were simply political observations she argued not personal attacks a line which she insisted was quite obvious to draw between discussions of the public good versus targeted assaults on individuals.

Charlie remained silent for a moment repeating the phrase political observations as though each word carried the weight of the world before asking with a carefully crafted innocent curiosity if that really excused it at all.

He then pointed out her own rhetoric that women that go out and vote for Republicans women are voting against their own self-intereSt.

They are voting against their own gender. They’re voting against what’s good for the country because they’re not that smart.

Then he delivered the question that abruptly extinguished all levity in the room. Was that a political observation or something else.

A hush descended over the studio. The cheerful camaraderie of what everyone assumed would be a standard addition of The View vanished instantly replaced by a thick tangible unease.

Instinctively Joy turned to her co-hosts her gaze pleading with someone anyone to intervene. But they simply let the scene play out.

Even Whoopi Goldberg who was never shy during an argument offered not a single word.

Realizing the tide of the debate was turning against her Joy argued that Charlie was taking her words out of context.

But her voice no longer held its previous authority. Charlie leaned in without a hint of breaking eye contact.

That’s just not how I see it he said calm as could be. I’ve watched that clip several times.

You spent a good deal of time painting women who do not share your political views as duped or simply not equipped with the skills of independent thinking.

Then he flipped the question back to Joy. Why is it when I make remarks about Hollywood they are considered problematic but when you do the same it’s deemed commentary.

Joy jumped back declaring that his words went far beyond jokes. She claimed he made degrading statements about women through his messy personal life into the mix and described him as unstable.

Then he surprised pretty much everyone in the studio by nodding slowly. It’s funny that you mentioned me being unstable.

I find it’s kind of an interesting thing to hear from somebody I felt had a few public outbursts and threw people off the air because they disagreed with you and then presented themselves as a victim.

He then continued referencing Joy’s post-election outbursts and wondering aloud were those unstable or was that just passionate journalism.

The cameras stayed trained on Joy as her expressions flickered. Anger surprise embarrassment and growing agitation plainly visible on her face.

It was becoming clear that she wasn’t used to being so severely challenged and she wasn’t about to cede the ground.

I have never ever had a public meltdown Joy stated her voice beginning to shake ever so slightly.

Charlie then reached into his pocket and produced his phone. For a second it seemed as though the tension in the room might ease but then holding up a list which appeared to have been carefully prepared he began to read from it one at a time citing occasions when Joy allegedly engaged in arguments with co-hosts walked off the set or constantly interrupted guests who were offering a dissenting opinion on political topics.

With each passing point he read the tension in the studio mounted until the room became so quiet that even a pin could have been heard drop.

For a few long seconds Joy struggled to find her words opening her mouth and then closing it shut as the phrases failed to materialize.

The other hosts at the table avoided eye contact clearly wishing they were anywhere but in the middle of that studio.

Joy finally seemed to find her voice and insisted that the moments were merely a byproduct of her passion about issues that to her mattered deeply to the American people.

Charlie did not raise his voice. In fact he reclined in his chair and offered a nonchalant expression that in some ways made what he was about to say even more effective.

He asked is passion not just another excuse these days. He went on for years in my opinion you have criticized other people and expect not to be criticized yourself.

You made a name in my estimation for questioning other people’s intelligence and the sincerity of their motives and their character.

The second anyone asked questions about your intelligence and motives and character you turned yourself into the victim.

The comment landed like a ton of bricks in the studio. Joy’s face flushed bright red and she gripped the edge of the desk so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

That conversation went over the line Joy said forcefully. You came to talk about your work not to grill the hosts but the bombshell dropped the moment she finished her sentence.

Charlie seized on her comment. Raising an eyebrow slightly he calmly pointed out we have been talking about my life for the past few minutes the trials and tribulations that have followed me throughout years of my life.

And the minute someone turns that question back towards you everyone now wants to change the subject.

The studio air became almost unbearable. Every camera hung still as the confrontation continued while Joy’s eyes shot to the producers offscreen in a silent plea for someone to save them from the disaster.

The producers looked as astonished as the viewers as the interview spun way outside of the tightly rehearsed format.

Whoopi Goldberg sensed the situation escalating to a boiling point and offered maybe we should move on to another topic before it goes anywhere further.

For a second it looked as if the heated confrontation might be over. It was not.

With respect you have over the years presented yourself as someone who is competent to tell people what’s right who is worthy of support and how people should think Charlie stated calmly.

And with that assumption of a position of authority and moral guidance over the masses of this country what in fact gives you that authority besides attacking people from the safety of a television studio.

Joy’s disappointment had rapidly transformed into determined resolve. She straightened up in her chair and replied confidently I have over 40 years in the television news industry and I’ve interviewed presidents and world leaders celebrities and I’ve covered major political stories.

Then she retorted and what have you done besides star in movies and get in scandals.

Charlie offered the same disarming smile that had unsettled the room from the moment he began.

I have had the pleasure of making a living by entertaining millions of people and creating opportunities for people who work with me over many years Charlie responded.

I have never purported to be anything other than an actor. I’ve never tried to pose myself as a reporter or a political expert.

However he turned his focus back onto Joy. I often hear your opinions offered as though they are factual conclusions as to the most informed opinion beyond genuine experts.

Joy shot back I am a journalist and I have over 40 years in this business.

Charlie lets out a slight chilling laugh and the studio goes dead quiet with the certainty that a whole other level to this confrontation was about to be revealed.

Charlie wouldn’t let the moment go. He looked directly at Joy and asked when was the last time you have ever gone in the field to go report on something to verify facts firsthand to do what would be considered a real piece of journalism.

Instead he asserted you became a woman who sits behind a desk and pontificates with opinions often based on the reporting of other people.

It was as if the very words were a trip wire. The poise Joy had cultivated so diligently began to unravel.

I fact checked every single thing I discuss on that show she fired back and I researched these issues for hours.

We research politics and culture and important social issues for days before we’re going to discuss them.

Oh scrolling through Twitter and following people that are of a political leaning is not investigative journalism Charlie responded cool.

That makes you a commentator and that makes you even less. The statement hung heavy in the air.

In the studio the temperature dropped even further. Sarah Haynes shuffled the papers in front of her nervously and averted her gaze and even normally unflappable Whoopi Goldberg for once stayed silent watching the exchange unfold with a grim expression.

That was just a vicious thing to say to me Joy’s voice trembled as she fought to defend herself.

I have always done the best I know how to do and tell the truth as I understand it and to hold powerful people accountable.

But Charlie pressed onward and the stakes ratcheted up significantly. What does integrity mean he asked leaning forward again.

If people perceive your interview style to be presenting clips selectively and downplaying opposing viewpoints and talking over people whenever the argument becomes too difficult to respond to how does that reflect integrity.

Before Joy could even formulate a response Charlie drove home his point. You said integrity in terms of the news when you wrote an article that many in the veterans community thought was an inaccurate portrayal.

Facts were disputed but instead of admitting there might have been mistakes made you defended your position vigorously.

And when anyone who dared to question you on that he stated where was your integrity there.

Joy attempted to explain the complexity of the story citing the myriad sources that contributed to its conflicting narratives but the confidence was waning.

The complexities are not just with how you interpret them Charlie cut in but with very simple factchecking and the fact that you ran with it and ran with it without even acknowledging there may have been an error.

You ran with it because it fit the narrative you wanted to present. There is the very real line between reporting on one side and activism on the other.

The pressure was palpable. Joy’s hands trembled her eyes darting off camera seemingly searching for some sign from production that this nightmare would end.

You’re twisting this whole entire segment to make me look bad because you can’t stand a critique of anything you’ve done in the past she declared accusingly.

But Charlie ever cool under fire countered without raising his voice. I’m not trying to hurt your feelings.

I’m just highlighting the disconnect between your public pronouncements of being a concerned woman who wants to protect American values when as an entertainer you have lived a privileged life or a woman who lectures actors on the evils of having too much money while at the same time you live an exceptionally privileged life or a woman who has talked about the need to protect women’s rights while at the same time you have been very cruel in your critique of women who have differing political viewpoints to your own.

He articulated the words hanging in the now stifling air. A hush descended upon the studio broken only by the soft insistent hum of the cameras.

You could hear each other’s breath. The swagger that had oozed out of Joy just minutes earlier had all but disappeared.

Her complexion turned pale and she clasped the edge of the table with such force that her knuckles became white.

With a voice that had barely risen above a whisper she insisted she had never personally attacked women.

With no hesitation Charlie pulled out his phone again making it obvious this was not the end.

He stated that he had compiled some of the comments that he felt contradicted her claim about not personalizing her attacks against women and cited examples related to conservative women successful women entrepreneurs homemakers and women with opposing political ideologies to her own.

Charlie suggested that this pattern demonstrated an inclination to dismiss or criticize women based on their perspectives and not necessarily an engagement with their ideas.

Joy immediately shook her head and repeated that those comments were directed towards political stances not individuals.

However what followed heightened the tension further. Charlie challenged this asking how comments targeting specific individuals with demeaning personal labels or questioning their competence constituted nothing more than an argument over ideas.

In his opinion the language used in those comments had elevated to the point where it was indistinguishable from an ad hominem attack.

An uncomfortable silence descended on the room again. Joy looked to either end of the table desperately wishing for a co-host to break in and change the subject.

But the gaze of everyone else in the room was directed elsewhere. Down at notes up at the ceiling anywhere but on the intensifying exchange between the two of them.

Nobody said a word. Nobody shifted gears feeling increasingly cornered Joy declared that the whole thing had devolved into ridiculousness and accused Charlie of ambushing her in her own show.

Almost instantaneously Charlie responded with none of his characteristic humor. He claimed that this was how most guests on her show were handled and pointed out that most other guests just didn’t fight back.

He simply didn’t. At that point Joy announced that the interview was over and started to stand up from her chair.

Charlie emphatically contested that. He pointed out that she had invited him for a conversation and that ending the conversation now would simply validate everything he had been saying about her.

She remained frozen mid-motion for a split second teetering between retreating or holding ground. The cameras dutifully recorded the hesitation intensifying the palpable silence that filled the room.

Joy reiterated that she did not have to stay there and be subjected to his accusations.

Charlie placidly agreed that she was free to leave whenever she wished but warned her that in his judgment doing so would prove to the viewers that she was not prepared to be subjected to the same scrutiny to which she regularly subjected her guests.

As her words hung in the air Joy slowly lowered herself back into her chair.

Her posture was altered completely the authority she’d projected at the outset of the interview replaced by what seemed like exhaustion and doubt.

After a prolonged silence she asked almost softly what it was he wanted from her.

Charlie’s face relaxed ever so slightly but his tone was consistent. He replied honestly. He reasoned that they were both performing in front of a crowd and argued that the difference between them was that he openly admitted to that role while he accused her of presenting herself as an objective journalist with higher standards to meet.

Whether the audience agreed with his assertion or not there was no disputing that the debate had spiraled in a way that no one in the room had anticipated and the climax of the interview still seemed to be looming ahead.

Joy was silent for many seconds and looking across the table to where emotion could be seen creeping across her face.

Her eyes had started to mist up and when she finally found her voice it was whispered as if the entire studio was straining to listen to every word.

Charlie didn’t know what the show meant to her she said. It wasn’t entertainment for Joy she felt but a platform which gave exposure to matters that really mattered.

Charlie listened without change to his face but soon broke in with a question that immediately changed direction of things again whose voices were actually being heard he asked because the show really seemed to be only about one thing.

When for instance had they ever allowed someone with fundamentally opposing viewpoints to finish what they had to say without interrupting them redirecting them or dismissing them entirely.

The question hung in the air. Joy dabbed her eyes again and was struggling to pull back her earlier assured stance as she responded to say the show did incorporate a lot of points of view but with not a lot of conviction it must be said.

Gently shaking his head Charlie countered that inviting those who only marginally differed wasn’t real diversity but just one viewpoint after another creating a circular effect which Charlie and the rest of the world to be fair had come to refer to as an echo chamber.

The awkwardness had gone beyond anything possible to ignore and Whoopi Goldberg realizing the interview had reached a critical and dangerous point again made an attempt to guide proceedings to an advertisement break.

Hold on a second before she got the word out of her mouth insisted Charlie in his still quiet and polite manner there is still one last thing to be said.

He went on to reiterate that the entire conversation had begun with discussions of his personal life his personality his past decisions etc.

Etc. And if that was something which was entirely fair he stated with the emphasis of a matador then that applies equally to all present.

Joy’s breathing began to increase noticeably as her gaze flickered around her as she appeared increasingly distressed by the situation and finally stuttered I can’t I can’t go on with this.

Charlie responded with a further stream of questions asked directly at Joy you can’t go on with this.

You can’t defend what you’ve done or you just haven’t been prepared to answer any questions in the manner you have done with hundreds of other guests over the years.

Again no raised voice but the impact was sufficient to have rendered the studio utterly silent.

The real issue Charlie concluded wasn’t so much the show as it had always been about but the lack of impartiality for as long as he could remember that existed between a few hosts on this program.

The hundreds of guest performers to which such relentless pressure has been applied with never even application.

The change came in a blink of an eye. Joy suddenly pushed herself up her chair scraping loudly across the studio floor as it echoed in the room.

I will not sit here anymore she declared. And to Charlie said this is my show.

Remaining sitting Charlie simply answered in his calm manner this show I’m not quite sure whether it’s one person’s.

I think that on any TV show nobody really owns any TV show. You are not bigger than any television program not bigger than any network and no matter who sits in the chair it will go on.

That hit home and everyone present realized that this had become the most explosive part of the evening and what was going to happen next would be part of history.

Joy was on the verge of collapsing. Tears streaming down her face. The once assured television persona the viewers had seen at the beginning of the interview was completely gone.

She had no more composure left and the emotions she tried so hard to suppress was no longer able to be hidden.

Trembling and fighting to keep her voice steady she looked at Charlie and told him that he was a terrible person.

Charlie didn’t deny it. Instead he just said calmly that many people could see him that way.

However there was one major difference he thought that separated him from Joy. He said he never pretended to be somebody that he was not.

He didn’t pretend to be somebody morally superior when he was clearly cruel to people.

He didn’t present himself as a hero of women while disparaging women that disagreed with him.

And he didn’t profess to be open-minded while being unwilling to listen to other opinions.

Backing up toward the edge of the stage and clearly looking for a way to escape the confrontation Charlie continued talking without raising his voice.

The biggest difference according to Charlie was responsibility. When he had made mistakes when he said things he regretted later he accepted responsibility instead of blaming it on misunderstanding or people taking things out of context and not realizing that so many guests had been on his program that treated people with opposition so disrespectfully and ungracefully and that you never seem to hold back anything from anyone and have spent many years crying out to people.

Finally overcome Joy said please stop please. Tears beginning to stream down her face and with the voice cracking.

But Charlie wasn’t finished. Why should I he asked. Hold back now when so many guests you’ve had on this show over the years have never been offered that same consideration and grace you ask of me right now.

You know that I’ve seen many of your guests have been verbally attacked on television and it really isn’t fair in my opinion for them to be taken to task in the way that so many of those individuals have been challenged and attacked.

You don’t seem to be prepared to let anybody of a different perspective of you be invited into the discussion into your thinking.

The room got a little quieter and Joy backed further to the edge of the stage and was apparently looking for one more last reply before bolting out of the studio and then with her voice quivering told him that everything that I’ve ever done I’ve tried to help people and make people aware of the issue and the people behind them.

Slowly Charlie rose up out of his chair and stood right in front of Joy and told her in no uncertain terms that while she might see it that way a lot of that was the problem.

What I’ve seen and I know you and others Charlie said is the demeaning of complex national debates that have been simplified into simple black and white and not at the expense of clarity or a search for the truth but simply for the sake of engagement in sound bites and of emotion.

What you and others on this program have engaged in is a way of reducing our policy debates into a game of got you he added.

In a way where disagreement with any of your policy positions have reduced to an inherent character flaws.

Joy tried to argue that wasn’t true but her once confident voice had almost disappeared.

But what you seem to believe is that there’s a long record of public discourse Charlie continued that will give people the chance to determine whether or not they’ve been attacked or demeaned for their beliefs rather than invited into respectful debate.

What I feel that we see he stated with even less volume than ever is that outrage is now a form of entertainment for some people.

That serious national policy issues are often presented in television shows as dramatic contests of personality designed to attract viewers rather than resolve our disagreements.

I think that while conflict is certainly part of human engagement it can very easily turn into spectacle.

The problem in my mind is when you don’t have substance but the appearance of fighting for change Charlie said.

There was a dead silence in the room. No one said a word. The other talk show hosts were standing completely still not sure if they were supposed to be doing something and still glued to the cameras rolling in the studio as tears were still falling down Joy’s face as she backed all the way to the edge of the stage.

After what seemed like an eternity Joy just said quietly I’m done. For a moment Joy stood stunned into silence then spoke quietly words almost unbelievable to those in the studio audience.

The quiet continued until for the first time in the conversation Whoopi who had seemed virtually speechless up to this point asked could you repeat that.

Joy turned back toward her eyes glistening and in a voice that was more strained by emotion than conviction said I’m done.

I can’t continue sitting here while this is happening to me. I do not consider what is taking place here to be journalism and I don’t consider it to be entertainment but I do consider it to be extraordinarily unfair.

Charlie however didn’t move. Calm cool composed. He simply replied what I believe has been demonstrated is that the same standard of confrontation that we often call accountability when applied to our guests is now being characterized as cruel when applied to the hoSt.

The rules suddenly changed the moment the roles were reversed. Joy continued to move slowly toward the door shaking her head.

Everyone out there at home knows what you’re doing to me. What I’ve tried to do Charlie replied is confront you respectfully.

Of course using arguments and perspectives that you’ve put forward yourself throughout the years. If confronting those perspectives at this moment is an attack for you then that might be something worth reflecting on also.

Joy offered no further reply. I’m done she said her voice clear and firm cutting through the silence that had descended again in the studio.

Not just with this interview but with this show with this network with this entire endeavor.

If this is how public confrontations are to be conducted from now on they will be conducted without me.

With that she turned and walked off the set leaving a stunned audience and an array of wide-eyed panelists behind.

Charlie remained seated his face unreadable for another moment before turning to the camera. What I believe has just happened is what occurs when you’ve been asking difficult questions for years and then all of the sudden you have to answer them.

The camera then cut to commercial but the emotional resonance of what had just transpired hung heavy in the air long after the table was no longer the focus of the broadcaSt.

Regardless of whether viewers believe Charlie overstepped the bounds or whether his approach was the only reasonable one in this circumstance the incident has undeniably been unforgettable.

If the account has been accurately represented it could leave viewers debating the exact location of the line between holding someone accountable and engaging in a personal attack.