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The Most Underpaid Hollywood Stars on TV

According to a new survey, talk show host Chelsea Handler is one of the most overpaid stars on television while Ashton Kutcher is one of the most underpaid.

The Los Angeles Times calculated how much several popular TV personalities are paid per viewer by dividing their annual salaries by the average number of viewers for each star's show as a way of determining who's overpaid and underpaid for their services.
 
Ashton Kutcher is the most underpaid star despite his massive salary.

Kutcher makes $ 17 million a year for his work on Two and a Half Men, but the show's 14.7 million viewers bumps his pay per viewer down to $1.16.

Find out which other stars figure on the list.

Ryan Seacrest

Ryan Seacrest only earns $0.75 per viewer as host of American Idol despite his $15-million salary and the show's 20 million plus viewers.

In the overpaid list, Anderson Cooper and David Letterman take spots next to Handler, based on the LA Times' calculations.

Cooper makes $13.54 per viewer for his work on Anderson Cooper: 360 ($6 million salary, 0.4 million viewers), while Letterman makes $9.69 for each one of his 3.2 million viewers due to his $31 million salary, a figure The Times notes is partly due to his longtime success in late night.

Jennifer Lopez

Recently ousted Idol judge Jennifer Lopez only made $0.63 per viewer with her $12.5 million contract for the singing reality show.

Christina Aguilera

Her Voice counterpart Christina Aguilera earned less ($0.17 per viewer with her $2.1 million salary and the show's 12.7 million viewers).
 
The LA Times' salary figures are based on interviews with talent agency reps, managers and network officials as well as published reports.