Two and a Half Men: Ashton Kutcher to Replace Charlie Sheen

Have CBS and Warner Bros. just been punk’d? Actor and producer Ashton Kutcher has signed a deal to join the cast of Two and a Half Men. The news comes after months of speculation about who would replace Charlie Sheen on the most popular sitcom in primetime television.

Though the casting of Kutcher isn’t as bold a choice as Hugh Grant might have been, he does have impressive credentials. He has experience shooting a multi-camera sitcom since he spent seven seasons as a series regular on FOX’s That 70s Show, from 1998 to 2005. He’s got solid comedic timing and is familiar with the week-to-week schedule.

Kutcher’s an experienced producer (Punk’d, Beauty and the Geek, The Real Wedding Crashers, Opportunity Knocks) and has a good professional reputation in the industry. That should be a welcome change for executive producer Chuck Lorre who was tired of butting heads with Sheen for so long.

Though Kutcher’s movie career has certainly cooled, many still flock to his romantic comedies and his casting could bring new female viewers to the series. He also has 6.5 million Twitter followers and, as Deadline points out, that’s more than watched the repeat of Two and a Half Men this week.

Kutcher teased his Twitter followers last night, writing, “what’s the square root of 6.25?” The answer is 2.5.

What do you think? Is Kutcher a good replacement? What should his role be — a relative that comes to stay that Alan can’t get rid of? Will you tune in to see how they handle the change?