Britney Spears Doing X-Factor for $16 Million?

USMagazine, Wednesday, April 11, 2012, 2:15pm (PDT)

Is Britney Spears about to join the ranks of Jennifer Lopez and Christina Aguilera?

On Wednesday, E! News reported that the pop superstar, 31, is close to signing a contract to be a judge on X Factor for a whopping $15 million.

And one source close to the negotiations tells Us Weekly that the "Till the World Ends" singer is actually "getting $16 million."

"No paperwork has actually been signed yet," the source explains. "But they finally came to terms. It was a long negotiation . . . Britney was a natural fit."

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The lucrative annual deal would be in the same league as those signed by Lopez on American Idol and Spears' former fellow Mouseketeer Aguilera on The Voice.

After the firing of judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones following the disappointing first season of the FOX competition show, the source says the show needs Spears' star power "badly . . .You can't have Idol with J Lo and Voice with Xtina and have X-factor with, um, Paula Abdul?"

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Still, an X-Factor rep tells Us: "We still refuse to confirm any talks at this time."

And another source adds: "Nothing has happened and nothing has changed . . . This is wildly exaggerated."

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An insider previously told Us that head judge and executive producer Simon Cowell balked at hiring Spears because he was "worried she won't be able to deliver good advice, and he's afraid contestants won't take her seriously."

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