Lee Daniels says there's an important discussion going down right now ... whether Jussie Smollett will be cut from "Empire."
The "Empire" creator was out and about Tuesday in New York City when photog Adam Glyn asked about the next season of the show, and whether there's a place for Jussie. Here's what's clear ... there's no clear answer for Daniels and Co.
Also, BTW, there's no clear answer on whether the show is coming back, because Season 6 has not been greenlit ... but we're guessing it will be a go.
Beyonce's dad is bringing his daughter's story to the stage ... because he's creating a musical based on Destiny's Child and you already know it's gonna be bootylicious!
Mathew Knowles is producing the show, "Survivor: The Destiny's Child Musical," and he says it's premiering in Houston next year, with additional plans for Broadway, London's West End and even a world tour!
The musical is told from Mathew's perspective, and Beyonce's dad says he wants to pull back the curtain and treat audiences to an honest, behind-the-scenes look at how one of the greatest female music groups of all-time got its start.
Mathew says the tale will start from the group's humble beginnings, chronicling its rise to superstardom, plus his own pioneering climb into the music industry. Ultimately, Mathew says the show's message is that building a dream takes sacrifice ... even at the cost of everything and everyone you love.
You know it's gonna be a rockin' production ... and Mathew says the musical's gonna feature a masterful mix of music, dance and beautiful imagery. He's collaborating with Je'Caryous Johnson to bring his story to life.
The Uber driver accused of killing former UFC fighter Rodrigo de Lima during an altercation in Brazil on Sunday has been fired by the rideshare company ... an Uber spokesperson tells TMZ Sports.
As we previously reported, the 26-year-old MMA fighter was a passenger in an Uber in Belem, Brazil with friends when he allegedly got into a verbal altercation with the driver.
The driver, later identified as Jefferson Roger Maciel, reportedly kicked Rodrigo out the car -- and despite initially driving away from the scene, turned around and smashed into Rodrigo from behind.
Rodrigo died from his injuries. He's survived by a wife and 2 young children.
A rep fro Uber confirmed Maciel was working for them at the time of the incident.
Uber says allegations are "horrible" -- adding, "As soon as we learned of this incident we immediately removed the driver’s access to the app and we stand ready to assist law enforcement with their investigation."
On Monday, cops said they were still searching for Maciel -- no word if they've located him yet.
De Lima was 9-3-1 as a pro -- and earned the nickname "Monstro" (which means monster) -- due to his fighting style.
He had two matches in the UFC -- fighting Neil Magny in 2014 and Efrain Escudero in 2015. He lost both of those fights and moved on to another pro fighting organization.
Nicolas Cage had something he clearly wanted to get off his chest when he hit up a karaoke bar ... because his rendition of "Purple Rain" was ... emotional.
Nic was at a joint Sunday in L.A.'s Koreatown when he tried his hand and vocal cords on the classic Prince song, and we're guessing the performance was fueled by his desire to annul his recent marriage of 4 days.
As we've reported ... Nic got sick and tired of his new wife, Erika Koike and filed for an annulment. He says they were wasted when they tied the knot in Vegas, and acted on impulse. There were signs it wasn't going to end well ... they got into a heated argument before walking down the aisle.
Erika doesn't see it that way ... she says the marriage was legit, she claims Nic asked her to come back to him, and she wants spousal support.
As for "Purple Rain" ... Prince once broke it down like this, "Purple rain pertains to the end of the world and being with the one you love and letting your faith/God guide you through the purple rain.”
So, is Nic dedicating this song to Erika, or someone else???
Offset's now facing a felony gun possession charge ... the fallout from his arrest last summer in Georgia.
Prosecutors filed 3 charges against the rapper in February, stemming from his July 2018 arrest where he was pulled over for allegedly making an improper lane change.
The Clayton County D.A.'s Office tells TMZ ... Offset's facing a felony charge for firearms possession by a convicted felon, along with misdemeanor charges for marijuana possession and that lane change.
The good news for Offset -- a felony charge of possession of a weapon during the commission of a crime was dropped.
He entered a plea of not guilty last month and his next court date is scheduled for May.
We broke the story ... the Migos rapper's lawyer believes Offset was targeted because he's rich, successful and black, and believes the cop's initial traffic stop was completely bogus.
We reached out to Offset and his legal team ... no word back so far.
Robert Kraft just won a major battle in the war over whether that spa video ever sees the light of day -- a judge has granted a protective order that keeps it on lockdown ... for now.
In court docs, obtained by TMZ, the judge agreed with Kraft's attorneys that releasing the police surveillance video to the media would jeopardize the Patriots owner's right to a fair trial. As a result, the judge's order says the video cannot go public until the case is over -- whether that's by plea agreement or prosecutors dropping the charges -- or once a trial jury is sworn in for the case.
The order is a victory for Kraft's legal team because it means ... prosecutors can't use the potential release of the video as leverage to get Kraft to cave on a plea deal.
However, Kraft might want to keep the champagne on ice.
There's another hearing scheduled for Friday where the judge is expected to make a decision about suppressing the release of any evidence in the case -- including the spa video. In Tuesday's order, the judge says he's reserving the right to reconsider his decision after Friday's hearing.
11:05 AM PT -- Mark and Tina tell TMZ, "At first we thought this comical legal document was a parody. Instead, this so-called lawsuit by the brothers is more of their lawyer driven nonsense, and a desperate attempt for them to stay relevant and further profit from an attack they admit they perpetrated."
They continue, "While we know this ridiculous lawsuit will soon be dismissed because it lacks any legal footing, we look forward to exposing the fraud the Osundairo brothers and their attorneys have committed on the public."
9:43 AM PT -- Ola was out and about Monday afternoon in Chicago ... looking carefree a day before he his brother, Abel, filed a lawsuit in federal court. Ola's asked if he thinks Jussie owes the City of Chicago an apology. He seems more psyched hanging out with his boy and their exotic pets.
8:35 AM PT -- The presser just ended and NOBODY asked why Abel and Ola are NOT suing Jussie. The brothers' attorney, Gloria Schmidt, read a statement on behalf of the brothers ... saying they can no longer sit back and watch lie after lie being fabricated about them.
7:45 AM PT -- The brothers' attorneys are holding a news conference in Chicago, and we'll be live streaming. The big question, of course ... WHY didn't Abel and Ola sue Jussie Smollett???
The 2 brothers who allegedly faked the Jussie Smollett attack are suing the actor's lawyers, Mark Geragos and Tina Glandian, for defamation, claiming the attorneys lied to the media and tried to make it appear Ola and Abel Osundairo were the culprits in a real, homophobic and racist attack.
The brothers filed the case in Chicago federal court, claiming Jussie "used his clout as a wealthy actor to influence [the brothers] who were in a subordinate relationship to him and were aspiring to 'make it.'"
The suit says when Tina Glandian went on 'GMA,' "Today" and the Reasonable Doubt podcast after the charges against Jussie were dismissed, she told a string of lies ... including the brothers wore whiteface during the attack and the brothers were involved in an illegal Nigerian steroid trafficking ring.
The lawsuit also claims Glandian falsely claimed one of the brothers "engaged in fornication with Mr. Smollett."
As for Geragos, the suit claims he "repeatedly indicated that plaintiffs conspired to criminally attack Mr. Smollett, and by doing so, implied plaintiffs committed perjury" to the Grand Jury and conspired to make false statements to the Chicago PD.
The suit doubles down and says the brothers never knew Jussie would go to the cops ... rather, he was staging the "attack" for social media.
The brothers say as a result of the alleged defamation they suffered extreme emotional distress, humiliation, anxiety, damages to their reputation, and damages to current and prospective business relations.
As we reported, Ola and Abel have had a tough time finding work, both as actors and personal trainers, in the wake of the scandal.
One final thing ... it's interesting the brothers did not sue Jussie, who also claimed they were the culprits in the alleged racist and homophobic attack.
Machine Gun Kelly knows what time it is ... and not only because Pete Davidson and comedian John Mulaney got him a Rolex for his 29th birthday.
We got MGK and Pete leaving TAO Monday night in L.A. where they were celebrating with friends. Kelly and Pete were toking cigs and posing for pics when our guy asked Kelly what he got for his birthday.
Check out the clip ... MGK couldn't wait to show off his new classic timepiece. He also couldn't wait to invite our camera guy onto his party van ... much to everyone's delight.
But, ya gotta watch Pete and Kelly warn their crew -- hot chicks and all -- watch your trap!!!
Britney Spears is at the tail end of her 30-day stay at a mental health facility ... and we've learned more about how she landed there in the first place.
As we reported, Britney has had a rough time dealing with her dad's recent illness. Jamie and Britney are super close -- he's been her conservator for nearly a dozen years -- and his health battles have taken a big toll on her.
We're told at the same time, Britney's doctors were adjusting her meds which had lost their efficacy. Britney's mental health issues were stabilized with a cocktail of medicines that were designed specifically her. Over time, those meds were increasingly ineffective and doctors needed to create a new cocktail.
We're told there were problems. First, they had to wean Britney off the existing meds. This cannot be done quickly and there's a risk of suicide if it's not done right -- it's that serious.
As doctors weaned her off the meds, they created a new cocktail, but it's all trial and error, and there were errors that made Britney unstable and ultimately unwilling to cooperate with doctors.
She was admitted to the mental health facility and we're told doctors think they've now found the right mixture of drugs.
Britney got a day pass Sunday to spend time with her boyfriend, Sam Asghari, in Bev Hills. She went back to the facility the same day.
One other thing ... there have been reports the conservatorship has forced meds on Britney against her will. Not true. The conservatorship Britney is under does not permit the conservator to force drugs on the person for whom the conservatorship was created.
On that note, there have also been reports Jamie Spears forced Britney into the mental health facility. The type of conservatorship Britney has -- through the probate court -- does not allow a conservator to force someone into a mental health facility.
What's more, we're told Jamie is adamant -- he did not want his daughter to go to the facility because he thought it would leak out to the media and he felt there were better ways of solving her problems. We're told Britney is the one who said she wanted to go.
7:45 AM PT -- A judge ruled Mingbi will be released on $5,000 bond on the condition she surrenders her passport and does not work in the spa/massage industry.Cops have arrested another woman in the Robert Kraft prostitution case -- a 58-year-old who allegedly performed a sexual act on the Patriots owner with another woman at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa.
Jupiter Police arrested Shen Mingbi -- who cops say was in the massage room with Kraft on January 19, 2019.
According to the police report, Kraft was joined in the massage room by 2 women -- one of whom was Mingbi.
Officials say the encounter was captured on surveillance and shows both Mingbi and Lei Wang using their hands on Kraft's penis.
Officials say Mingbi was also involved in sexual acts with several other men at the spa.
Wang had already been arrested and charged in the case -- but now, officials have busted Mingbi too.
Mingbi has been formally charged with 1 count of deriving support from prostitution and 8 counts of offer to commit prostitution. She's in court right now (Tuesday) to face the charges.
As for Kraft, he's got a hearing on Friday where he'll continue to fight to block officials from releasing the spa video to the media.
Kraft has claimed the release of the video would hamper his ability to get a fair trial because it would taint the jury pool.
Justin Bieber jumped the gun at Coachella when he said an album was coming soon ... 'cause TMZ's learned it's actually gonna be about another year before a full set of new tunes is ready.
Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... the Biebs got caught up in the moment when he said "album coming soon" after wrapping up his Sunday night surprise performance with Ariana Grande. Yes, he has been working on new music, but that tease for a new albumimmediately cranked up fan anticipation.
Great marketing, for sure, on JB's part -- and while he HAS recorded a few songs already ... we're told he's still working on creating a new sound.
Of course, the bottom line is he actually IS recording ... and doing so when everything's coming up Justin. We're told he feels very centered, and he's excited about getting back in the studio grind.
Remember ... Bieber hasn't released a solo of his own for more than 3 years -- his "Purpose" album dropped way back in November 2015. He told the Coachella crowd he hadn't performed in like 2 years and seemed to have thoroughly enjoyed, his words, getting his groove back.
He was also recently featured in Lil Dicky's new single "Earth" -- the one where he plays a baboon. It was Justin's first collab since "No Brainer" was released last July.
Goes without saying ... Justin's new album is already highly anticipated.
Cops paid Wendy Williams a visit to check on her after a random caller alleged her husband, Kevin Hunter, was poisoning the talk show host.
According to the police report ... the outrageous call, made back in January, came from someone claiming to work for Williams' production company. The caller believed Kevin was slipping Wendy something harmful, and he or she wanted cops to check on her.
The report says 2 officers went to Williams' New Jersey residence and were greeted by Hunter, who was hesitant to let them in for the welfare check because he said Wendy was sick and recovering from a health problem.
Cops say they explained to Hunter they were required to speak with Williams due to the anonymous call. When he allowed them to enter, they found Williams in bed "with the blanket covering from neck to toe."
According to the report ... one of the officers asked Kevin to leave the bedroom so they could talk to Wendy alone, but he didn't want to leave her side. As for the health problem she had -- Wendy told cops she was recovering from a broken shoulder.
An officer eventually asked her if there was any truth to the anonymous tip she was being poisoned, and Wendy responded with something like ... "Well, I'm very popular." When the cop repeated the question, the report says she became tearful, but denied there was any truth to it.
The cops left after Wendy told them once more she was okay.
Mathew says the tale will start from the group's humble beginnings, chronicling its rise to superstardom, plus his own pioneering climb into the music industry. Ultimately, Mathew says the show's message is that building a dream takes sacrifice ... even at the cost of everything and everyone you love. 
The Uber driver accused of killing former UFC fighter 
As we've reported ... Nic got sick and tired of his new wife, Erika Koike and filed for an annulment. He says they were wasted when they 
The 2 brothers who allegedly faked the 
Britney got a 
7:45 AM PT -- A judge ruled Mingbi will be released on $5,000 bond on the condition she surrenders her passport and does not work in the spa/massage industry.
Cops paid 