Cheryl Hines Defends Larry David Beating Up Elmo

Cheryl Hines isn't blaming Larry David for beating up Elmo ... saying producers should've known better than to put the two of them on the same set.

The actress -- who starred alongside Larry in 101 episodes of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" -- defended her television ex-husband during Wednesday's episode of "Literally with Rob Lowe," saying the people behind the show should've known something was bound to go down.

CH said quite frankly, "He doesn't care. He doesn't care about a puppet! He doesn't care about human beings" ... maybe a bit harsh, but Larry has cultivated a sourpuss persona over the years.

CH continued by saying Larry's made a career out of telling people he doesn't care about their feelings ... so obviously a puppet preaching mental health lessons was bound to set him off.

Cheryl made it clear Elmo didn't do anything wrong -- saying he didn't "ask for this" -- and instead pinning the blame on showrunners.

It's all clearly in good fun for Cheryl ... though others in the television industry didn't take the attack as well as she did.

As we previously reported ... Wil Wheaton completely torched David online after video of his appearance on 'Today' went viral. The 'Star Trek' actor blasted LD, saying his attack triggered traumatic memories of his own abuse at the hands of his father.

Larry's yet to respond to Wil's condemnation ... but if Cheryl or his on-camera "apologies" are to be believed, it's unlikely WW's getting a genuine "sorry" anytime soon.