It took quite some time for Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen to become cordial co-parents.
During a recent guest appearance on the "Just B with Bethenny Frankel" podcast, the 52-year-old recalled the extremely difficult dynamic she and her ex-husband had during the early stages of raising their two daughters — Sami, 19, and Lola, 18 — after their divorce was finalized in 2006.
"So in the beginning with Charlie and I, and I'm sure he'll be fine that I'm talking about this and I'm sure he'll probably say it too, we were not getting along at all," Richards explained to Bethenny Frankel during the Thursday, December 21, podcast episode.
"And it was harder when he was with his other ex. When they got together, it was very difficult. I wasn't allowed to go up to the house," the Wild Things actress candidly confessed of Sheen — who tied the knot with his ex-wife Brooke Mueller in 2008 before welcoming 14-year-old twins Max and Bob and later divorcing in 2011.
Detailing how custody transfers went between the pair at the time, Richards continued: "I had to drop the kids off at the gate and have someone drive them through the gate to the house, which was very difficult for the kids because then they feel insecure. 'How come mom can't come to the house?'"
Richards admitted she tried to convince Sheen — who will celebrate six years of sobriety next month — to "fake" being nice to each other for the sake of their daughters, noting, "otherwise they would feel so insecure and right away, not safe."
"Because if mom can't come in, why are we going in there? You know what I mean?" she asked Frankel.
Elsewhere in the episode, Richards emphasized how much she "never wanted the girls to hate their dad."
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"I wanted them to have a good relationship because I have such an amazing relationship with my father and with my mom. So that's why I really wanted us to work hard at keeping it healthy and positive and not say anything bad about him," The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum expressed regarding her motivation to make things work between her and Sheen as parents.
"I would tell everyone in my house, do not talk negatively about their dad. Do not say a word. I went overboard actually, to the point where when things did go the way they did, they were shocked. Like, how come they didn't know this?" Richards concluded, seemingly referencing Sheen's alcohol and substance abuse struggles, which lasted until January 2018.
