Angus T. Jones on Leaving Stardom Behind: 'I Got Pretty Doomsday'

— -- It's been four years since Angus T. Jones described his former show, "Two and a Half Men," as "filth" and begged people to stop watching.

Now, after attending college and living a "normal existence," the 23-year-old, who played happy-go-lucky kid Jake Harper for 10 seasons, admits that his thinking got "pretty doomsday."

"If you’d asked me a few years ago if I wanted to get back involved in the industry, I would have said, ‘No. Not at all,’" he told People magazine in a new interview.

"I got pretty doomsday with my thinking for a long time, but now I’m having fun and enjoying where I’m at," he said. "I no longer feel like every step I take is on a land mine."

Jones was cast on the show in 2003 at the age of 9, alongside actors Jon Cryer and Charlie Sheen. By age 17, he was making over $300,000 an episode, according to The Hollywood Reporter. But in 2012, he made a video testimonial about becoming a Seventh-Day Adventist and went on an extended tirade about "Two and a Half Men." He later apologized for bashing the show. After finishing out the 10th season, he never appeared on the show again.

Instead, Jones enrolled at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he said, "I wasn’t the center of everyone’s attention, and that was nice."

Currently "on a break" from school, he told People he plans on eventually getting his degree. But, for now, he’s back living in Los Angeles, where he enjoys spending time with his 10-year-old brother Otto.

"Getting to be a part of his life is one of my most favorite things," Jones said.