Most Overpaid Actors 2012: Eddie Murphy Tops Katherine Heigl, Reese Witherspoon On Forbes List

Eddie Murphy was named the "Most Overpaid Actor in Hollywood" by Forbes. Here, he poses at "Eddie Murphy: One Night Only," a celebration of Murphy's career on Nov. 3 in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision)

Eddie Murphy might have once been a hit on "Saturday Night Live" and "Beverly Hills Cop," but these days the actor's claim to fame is landing the title of "Most Overpaid Actor in Hollywood."
Murphy came in at the No. 1 spot for the most overpaid actor this year. A series of recent box office flops -- like "A Thousand Words," "Meet Dave" and "Tower Heist" -- left studios with $2.30 for every $1 they paid Murphy. Last year, the 51-year-old came in second place, making the studio $2.70 for every $1 paid.
Visit Forbes to see the complete list of 2012's "Most Overpaid Actors in Hollywood."
Forbes compiled the list of the 10 most overpaid actors in Hollywood by using data on actors’ earnings from their Celebrity 100 list, plus estimates from Box Office Mojo. Forbes looked at the last three wide-release films the actor made to calculate the investment for the studio, determining how much the studio made versus the star's salary.
Katherine Heigl ranks behind Murphy. For every $1 she was paid, studios earned an average of $3.40, with flops like "One For The Money," Forbes notes. Behind Heigl is Reese Witherspoon.
The Los Angeles Times notes how times have changed for Murphy. "Shrek Forever After," "Imagine That," "Tower Heist" and "A Thousand Words" made a combined domestic box office total of $196.3 million. Compare this to his 1980s hits "48 Hrs.," "Trading Places" and "Beverly Hills Cop," which made $316.3 million.
Murphy may be able to make a comeback with some upcoming projects. He is set to star in the sequel to "Twins," titled "Triplets," alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito. He has also been shopping a TV remake of "Beverly Hills Cop," which was picked up by CBS, according to Screen Rant.