The Welsh actor will fund social projects with his earnings
In an interview with The Big Issue, Sheen revealed that he doesn't profit off of his acting work anymore. He stated he has now "essentially turned myself into a social enterprise, a not-for-profit actor."
Sheen went on to say, "I’ve realized in the last few years that I want to be one of those people who help other people the way so many people helped me. I don’t want to just be someone who enjoys the fruits of what other people have done and then pull the drawbridge up."
"I’m at the stage of my life and career where I have a window of opportunity that will probably never be this good again. I’m able to get people in a room, I can open doors. I don’t want to look back and think, I could have done something with that platform. I could have done something with that money."
The 'Good Omens' star said that a project in his hometown of Port Talbot was a major turning point. It involved the 72-hour National Theatre production of 'The Passion'.
"That project involved the entire town and it was a big awakening for me. I got to know people and organizations within my hometown that I didn’t know existed. Little group trying to help young carers, who had just enough funding to make a tiny difference to a kid’s life by putting on one night a week where they could get out and go bowling or watch a film and just be a kid."
He added, "I would come back to visit three or four months later, and find out that funding had gone. The organization didn’t exist anymore. I wanted to help those people. I didn’t just want to be a patron or a supportive voice, I wanted to actually do more than that."
Another moment came when he discovered that the 2019 Homeless Football World Cup, held in Cardiff, was in jeopardy. Issues were caused by lack of funding just days before going ahead. "I had to make a decision – I could walk away from it, and it wouldn’t happen. All those people from all around the world who were banking on coming to have this extraordinary experience, maybe a life-changing experience, wouldn’t have it. I thought 'I'm not going to let that happen.'"
Sheen, who starred last year as Chris Tarrent in 'Quiz' decided to front the money for the tournament. Subsequently, he put his house in the UK and US up for sale. "It was scary and incredibly stressful. And I’ll be paying for it for a long time."
It was then that the 52 year-old realized he could gain the money back through acting, and continue funding projects.
"When I came out the other side I realized I could do this kind of thing. If I can keep earning money it’s not going to ruin me. There was something quite liberating about going, alright, I’ll put large amounts of money into this or that. Because I’ll be able to earn it back again. I’ve essentially turned myself into a social enterprise, a not-for-profit actor."