Actors Charged with Domestic Violence

Allegations and criminal charges against public figures draw intense scrutiny, and outcomes vary widely—from convictions and pleas to dropped cases and expungements. This list focuses on male actors who have faced domestic-violence-related criminal charges, stating the charge and outcome as reported, and placing those facts alongside clear context about their on-screen work.

For each entry, you’ll see a concise, neutral summary of the case’s status as reported at the time, plus concrete details about prominent roles—plots, casts, and creatives—so the film and TV work is accurately represented alongside the legal history.

Mel Gibson

In Los Angeles, Mel Gibson pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor battery charge involving Oksana Grigorieva; the court imposed three years of probation and a one-year domestic-violence counseling program, and there was no jail time as part of the sentence. On screen, Gibson headlined ‘Lethal Weapon’ as detective Martin Riggs opposite Danny Glover under director Richard Donner, pairing action set pieces with character-driven banter, and he directed the historical epic ‘Braveheart’, which centers on William Wallace’s rebellion and features performances by Sophie Marceau and Patrick McGoohan.

Gibson’s plea agreement closed a high-profile case that had unfolded over the previous year, a resolution widely reported at the time by Los Angeles outlets following the filing and booking steps. As a filmmaker, he later returned behind the camera for ‘Hacksaw Ridge’, a World War II drama about conscientious objector Desmond Doss, balancing large-scale combat sequences with a cast led by Andrew Garfield, Sam Worthington, and Hugo Weaving.

Charlie Sheen

Charlie Sheen was arrested in Aspen after a domestic incident and later pleaded guilty to a reduced misdemeanor assault count; prosecutors withdrew more serious charges as part of the plea, and the court ordered rehabilitation, probation, and anger-management hours. Sheen’s screen work ranges from ‘Platoon’, Oliver Stone’s Vietnam War drama featuring Willem Dafoe and Tom Berenger in a moral showdown, to ‘Wall Street’, where he plays a young trader opposite Michael Douglas in a story about ambition, mentorship, and financial crime.

He also led the sitcom ‘Two and a Half Men’, created by Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn, sharing the ensemble with Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones while the series built long-running domestic and workplace arcs around the Harper household. The Aspen plea and sentencing terms were documented by national and local outlets, noting the disposition of counts and the court-ordered program components.

Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage was arrested in New Orleans on suspicion of domestic abuse battery, disturbing the peace, and public intoxication; after review, the local district attorney declined to prosecute, and no charges were pursued. On the film side, Cage anchored ‘Leaving Las Vegas’, a character study directed by Mike Figgis opposite Elisabeth Shue, and he headlined the adventure caper ‘National Treasure’, directed by Jon Turteltaub, leading an ensemble that includes Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, and Harvey Keitel through a clue-driven treasure hunt.

Coverage at the time confirmed the DA’s decision and the closure of the matter, noting the arrest had occurred during a production stint in the city’s French Quarter. Elsewhere in his career, Cage has alternated between intimate dramas like ‘Adaptation.’—a meta-narrative collaboration with director Spike Jonze and writer Charlie Kaufman featuring Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper—and action films such as ‘Face/Off’, directed by John Woo and pairing him with John Travolta in an identity-swap thriller.

Jonathan Majors

Jonathan Majors was arrested in New York following a domestic dispute and, after trial, was found guilty of assault and harassment; at sentencing, the judge imposed a yearlong domestic-violence counseling program and other conditions in lieu of incarceration. His prominent screen roles include ‘Creed III’, where he plays a onetime prodigy-turned-rival opposite director-star Michael B. Jordan with Tessa Thompson and Phylicia Rashad in key roles, and ‘Lovecraft Country’, developed by showrunner Misha Green, which blends horror creatures and real-world racism on a perilous road trip anchored by performances from Jurnee Smollett and Courtney B. Vance.

The verdict and sentencing were widely reported, noting a split verdict on the counts and the specifics of the court-ordered program. Majors had also appeared in Marvel titles such as ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ and the series ‘Loki’, where the character’s multiverse storylines intersect with an ensemble that includes Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Tom Hiddleston, and Owen Wilson.

Tom Sizemore

Tom Sizemore was convicted in Los Angeles in a case involving then-girlfriend Heidi Fleiss, with reporting at the time describing a jury verdict on multiple counts and a subsequent sentence involving jail time that was structured around rehabilitation and probation. Years later, Los Angeles authorities brought new misdemeanor domestic-abuse charges after a separate arrest; filings and updates documented charge evaluations and the city attorney’s case. Sizemore’s best-known work includes ‘Saving Private Ryan’, where he plays a battle-hardened sergeant under Steven Spielberg, and ‘Heat’, Michael Mann’s heist saga featuring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Val Kilmer.

Contemporary coverage also noted that prosecutors in a later incident declined felony filing and referred matters for misdemeanor consideration before charges were ultimately brought by the city attorney. Beyond war and crime epics, Sizemore appeared in ‘Black Hawk Down’, Ridley Scott’s account of the Battle of Mogadishu featuring an ensemble of soldiers and commanders, and ‘Natural Born Killers’, the Oliver Stone film that interweaves a law-enforcement pursuit with media-satire framing and a cast that includes Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis.

Mickey Rourke

Mickey Rourke was charged with spousal battery related to an alleged incident involving Carré Otis; he pleaded not guilty, and later accounts reported that the case was dropped. On screen, Rourke’s resurgence came with ‘The Wrestler’, directed by Darren Aronofsky, which follows an aging professional wrestler navigating health crises and family strain, with supporting turns by Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood, and he also appeared in ‘Sin City’, a stylized neo-noir directed by Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller that intercuts his storyline with performances by Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, and Bruce Willis.

Coverage at the time of the charge detailed the arraignment and potential penalties, while later profiles summarized the dismissal and his return to screen work. Earlier in his career, Rourke led ‘Angel Heart’ under Alan Parker in a supernatural noir opposite Robert De Niro and Lisa Bonet and co-starred in ‘9½ Weeks’, an erotic drama noted for its New York setting and collaboration between director Adrian Lyne and co-lead Kim Basinger.

Josh Brolin

Josh Brolin was cited and arrested on a misdemeanor spousal-battery allegation after Diane Lane called police during an argument; he was released on bail, and reporting noted that the case did not proceed to charges. Brolin’s standout roles include ‘No Country for Old Men’, a Coen brothers crime thriller about a hunter who stumbles on cash from a drug deal gone wrong, set against a relentless pursuit by Javier Bardem’s antagonist and anchored by Tommy Lee Jones’s lawman, and ‘Sicario’, Denis Villeneuve’s border-crime drama featuring Emily Blunt and Benicio del Toro.

Follow-up coverage and later interviews reiterated that Lane declined to press charges and the incident was characterized by representatives as a misunderstanding. Elsewhere, Brolin portrayed Thanos in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’, where the character’s quest for the Infinity Stones drives interlocking plotlines across an ensemble including Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, and Scarlett Johansson, and he returned as Cable in ‘Deadpool 2’, joining Ryan Reynolds in a time-tangled antihero story.

Terrence Howard

Police and local reporting indicate Terrence Howard was charged in Pennsylvania with offenses including simple assault and harassment involving his then-estranged wife; the case ended with a plea to a lesser disorderly-conduct count and other charges were withdrawn. On screen, Howard’s work spans music drama and superhero fare: in ‘Hustle & Flow’, written and directed by Craig Brewer, he plays a Memphis hustler who records a rap demo with support from characters played by Taraji P. Henson and Anthony Anderson, and he originated the role of James “Rhodey” Rhodes in ‘Iron Man’, directed by Jon Favreau, where he serves as a military liaison to Tony Stark amid scenes with Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeff Bridges.

Contemporaneous materials and subsequent summaries reference the police file and the plea’s disposition, noting the shift from multiple counts to a disorderly-conduct plea in court. Howard also starred on television in ‘Empire’, a music-industry family drama co-created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, sharing the ensemble with Taraji P. Henson and navigating label power struggles, songwriting sessions, and legal and personal conflicts tied to the show’s fictional catalog.

Share your thoughts respectfully below—how should the media balance reporting on criminal cases with coverage of the work itself, and which examples do you think belong on a future update of this list?