KA-CHING! Ashton Kutcher (far right), who replaced Charlie Sheen on “Two and a Half Men,” at his first taping on Friday in LA. (AP)
All hail Ashton Kutcher — who’s now TV’s highest-paid sitcom star.
Not bad for a guy whose first “Two and a Half Men” episode hasn’t even aired yet.
Kutcher will pull down $700,000 per episode ($15.4 million for the season) as Charlie Sheen’s replacement on the hit CBS series.
He’ll play heartbroken Internet billionaire Walden Schmidt.
While Kutcher’s take-home “Men” scratch is more than veteran co-stars Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones, it’s a lot less than the $1.2 million per episode Sheen was earning before he imploded, according to TV Guide.
The 33-year-old actor, who’s famously married to 48-year-old Demi Moore, has never met Sheen — but said he’s heard from his troubled predecessor, who was canned from “Men” last March after his well-publicized drug binges and his verbal sparring with show creator Chuck Lorre.
“I’ve never met him in my life,” Kutcher told Details magazine. “But, you know, he sent me congratulations and wished me well. Via Twitter.”
Meanwhile, “Where’s Charlie?” bumper stickers have been popping up all over LA, mostly adorning street signs. Suspiciously, the bulk of the stickers have been plastered around Sheen’s Mulholland neighborhood.
According to TMZ, Sheen appreciates the support — but frowns on the defacement of public property.
Cryer wasn’t so supportive of his former co-star yesterday, blasting Sheen on LA’s “KTLA Morning News” show.
“I never want to go through that again,” Cryer said of Sheen’s antics. “It was an awful thing to be a part of.
“I’m glad that some peace has come out of it.”
Cryer also said that Kutcher “was amazing” in his role as Walden Schmidt.
“He took the roof off the place,” Cryer said.
“It’s a lovely vibe.”