Eddie Murphy was once among Hollywood's top box-office draws, but he now has the dubious honour of being crowned its most overpaid actor, according to Forbes magazine.
In its annual list, determined by the misalignment between star salaries and their films' box-office take, Murphy, once a one-man gold mine with 1980s hits such as Trading Places and Beverly Hills Cop, displaced Drew Barrymore for the top spot.
"Murphy's career has just collapsed," Forbes said, citing such recent box-office bombs as Imagine That, A Thousand Words and Meet Dave.
Weighing box office receipts against paycheques, Forbes calculated that every dollar Murphy was paid for his last three films returned an average of just $2.30 at the box office. Murphy placed second on the list a year ago.
Popular actresses such as Katherine Heigl and Oscar winners Reese Witherspoon and Sandra Bullock made the top five, with "returns" ranging from $3.40 to $5.
Forbes took issue with Witherspoon's "questionable" choices such as the star-laden, James L. Brooks romantic comedy How Do You Know, which was one of 2010's worst-performing films.
