Entertainment

Ashton Kutcher will replace Charlie Sheen on ‘Two and a Half Men’: report

LOS ANGELES — Dude!

Ashton Kutcher has been chosen to replace Charlie Sheen on “Two and a Half Men” and is finalizing the deal, according to a new report.

Kutcher, 33, got his showbiz start on TV’s “That 70’s Show” and was the host of MTV’s “Punk’d” before going on to star in feature films.

Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Kutcher will be seeing a ‘huge payday’ to join the show.

The actor, married to actress Demi Moore, is now said to be a contender for the TV comedy just one day after English actor Hugh Grant reportedly ended discussions about joining the hit CBS show due to creative differences.

CBS executives have also considered big Hollywood names like Woody Harrelson, Rob Lowe, John Stamos and Jeremy Piven for the lead role, looking for “an exciting actor who’d never done TV before,” an insider told Deadline Wednesday.

Les Moonves, CBS President, reportedly told the show’s creator, Chuck Lorre, to “swing high” in finding a replacement for Sheen — to attract the same kind of buzz created by the troubled star’s departure, according to the source.

The network is expected to announce the new cast member soon, as potential advertisers congregate to decide which shows they will back at the CBS upfront presentations next week.

Sheen was fired from the show in March following his series of booze and drug-fueled benders and his bizarre tirades against Lorre and CBS execs during his media blitz.

The 45-year-old has filed a $100 million lawsuit against Lorre and the show’s production company for wrongful termination.

With NewsCore