TMZ.com Home

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed -- the woman at the center of the "Rust" death investigation -- was also recently tied to the death of a close friend, and her insurance company shelled out big bucks to his family.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Reed's friend, Tyler Dyer, was killed in an accident back in August 2020 -- a wreck that also involved her boyfriend, Aaron Butcher. Both men were on motorcycles at the time -- Aaron had borrowed Hannah's.

Tyler's dad tells us all 3 of them had been hanging out at a party prior to the accident -- and Hannah admitted to cops she'd seen both Tyler and Aaron drink 4 to 5 beers each before she opted to give Aaron the keys to her ride.

BTW, Aaron was already on probation for a DUI, and only permitted to operate vehicles with a breathalyzer attached to the ignition ... which Hannah's bike did not have.

According to cops, Tyler was going too fast when he made a turn and crashed his bike into a wall ... while Aaron tried to avoid him, and ended up wrecking Hannah's bike.

Tyler died in the crash, Aaron was arrested for aggravated DUI, and because he was on Hannah's bike ... her insurance company paid Dyer's parents $50,000 in exchange for an agreement not to sue Hannah in the future.

The documents state each of Tyler's parents ended up walking away with $15,481.

TMZ broke the story, 24-year-old Reed revealed just last month she only recently wrapped her first project as a head armorer ... a project she says she almost didn't take on because she was afraid she lacked experience.

Dr. Fauci and the NIH are getting a clear message ... STOP supporting animal testing in the wake of allegations his agency used taxpayer money to bankroll torturous dog research.

The Beagle Freedom Project, a nonprofit animal advocacy and rescue organization, fired off a letter to Fauci ... demanding he and the NIH immediately stop funding research using animals. Not only that, they want anyone involved in the research to face criminal charges.

In the letter, obtained by TMZ, the org rips animal testing as outdated, flawed, cruel, unethical and harmful ... and demands Fauci and the NIH put an end to the practice.

As we've reported ... Fauci is under fire because a watchdog group claims to have obtained documents linking NIH-funded animal testing overseas, where over 40 beagles were killed during experiments with insects. There's a photo that appears to show 2 Beagles with their head in netting as sand flies bite their faces. There's a report their vocal cords were removed to prevent them from howling.

Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina previously fired off a letter to Fauci, in which she and 23 colleagues from both sides of the aisle asked the doc to sit for a hearing on the subject.

Marvin Vettori's badassery last week's already paying off ... 'cause Dana White tells TMZ Sports the UFC star could be tapped as the backup fighter for Israel Adesanya vs. Robert Whittaker's title fight.

Izzy, the champion, and Whittaker, the #1 contender, are fighting at UFC 271 in February ... and we asked White if 28-year-old Vettori would be selected as the fighter to step in should 1 of the men be unable to fight.

"It absolutely makes sense," Dana says.

FYI, Adesanya and Vettori fought in June at UFC 263. Israel won by unanimous decision.

Last week, Marvin, still fought -- and beat -- Paulo Costa ... despite the fact the fight took place at 205 lbs. after the Brazilian MMA star showed up fight week and declared he couldn't make weight.

It's likely that most fighters wouldn't have accepted the fight under those conditions ... but Marvin ain't most fighters.

"Listen, he's brilliant to take that fight. First of all, he's a stud. The guy isn't afraid of anybody or any circumstances. He showed up to fight no matter what the weight was gonna be. Didn't let any of that stuff get in his head," White says.

"Stayed cool, calm and composed the entire week. And, what it did for him, it probably made him the #2 ranked guy in the world."

And, Dana was exactly right ... the UFC Athlete Rankings came out Tuesday, and Marvin made a big jump, going up 3 spots all the way to #2.

Costa also fell 3 spots to #6, though, he's still listed as a Middleweight (185 lbs.) ... a division the UFC honcho says Paulo will NOT fight in again.

"[Costa] can't [fight at 185 lbs.]. He's already proven that he can't make the weight. Why would we go through this again? Why would we put him through that again? He's a 205-pound fighter now. We just gotta figure out what the next move is, and who he fights first in that division."

Dana also previewed the UFC's 2 upcoming cards -- UFC 267 and UFC 268 -- both of which are stacked.

267, going down on Fight Island this weekend, features Jan Blachowicz vs. Glover Teixeira, Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen, Islam Makhachev vs. Dan Hooker and the return of Khamzat Chimaev vs. Li Jingliang.

Canadian actor Hayden Christensen was in his early 20s when he took on the role of the lightsaber-swinging Jedi, Anakin Skywalker -- who trains under the apprenticeship of Obi-Wan Kenobi and fathers twins with Padme Amidala before going to the dark side and becoming Darth Vader  -- in the 2002 sci-fi film "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones" and the 2005 follow-up "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith."

The movie masterpieces were packed with big stars including Ewan McGregor as the young version of the level-headed Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Samuel L. Jackson as the Jedi Councilman with a purple lightsaber, Mace Windu ... and of course Natalie Portman as the Naboo queen and baby mama, Padme Amidala.

Hayden has been making headlines with the announcement of his return to the franchise in 2022.

Mark Few refused officers' orders repeatedly and appeared very annoyed and frustrated with cops during his DUI arrest in September, new police video obtained by TMZ Sports shows.

The Gonzaga men's basketball head coach was pulled over in Idaho at around 8 PM on Sept. 6 ... after authorities said he was swerving in his car and driving erratically.

And, in footage of the stop, you can see Few wasn't happy about any of it.

Few -- who told cops he was on his way home to Spokane from his vacation house -- initially refused to get out of his car when cops ordered him to ... and he then continuously stuffed his hands in his pockets despite officers telling him to keep them away from his shorts.

Later during the stop, Few refused to do any field sobriety tests -- claiming they were "totally subjective," and adding that previous injuries wouldn't allow him to do the tests properly.

Throughout questioning, Few grabbed his phone multiple times and attempted to call his attorney -- only to have cops tell him to put the device away.

Few told officers he had been swerving because he was trying to control the dogs in his car -- and he said emphatically that he believed he was okay to drive.

Video shows, though, the 58-year-old did admit to drinking beer earlier in the day.

After refusing to do the field sobriety tests, cops placed him in cuffs and put him in the back of a squad car.

Few later agreed to blow into a breathalyzer ... and cops say he blew a .119 and a .120 -- well above the legal limit of .08.

Few was eventually taken to a nearby medical facility to have his blood drawn ... and afterward, he was issued a citation and was allowed to be picked up by a friend.

Few was ultimately charged over the incident ... and pled guilty to misdemeanor DUI earlier this month. He was ordered to, among other things, perform community service and was placed on unsupervised probation for one year.

Halyna Hutchins' family is almost certainly gearing up for a wrongful death lawsuit -- in the wake of her death on the set of the movie "Rust" -- and TMZ has learned the insurance policy that covered the production is limited to $6 million.

We obtained the certificate of insurance written by Front Row Insurance Brokers. General liability coverage is limited to $1 million per occurrence. There is also a commercial umbrella policy -- which is a supplement to the general liability coverage -- for an additional $5 million.

The production company filed a permit for the film, and the paperwork shows a $1 million policy, but that appears to be the minimum required for shooting in New Mexico. The production company obtained the umbrella, which is quite typical but not referenced in the permit.

It sounds like a lot of money, but it could be woefully inadequate. 42-year-old Hutchins was a rising star with decades of earnings ahead of her. She was also a mother and a wife, which allows her son and husband to collect for loss of affection. And remember, director Joel Souza was also shot and wounded, and he would have a personal injury claim. The total the insurance company would pay for both Hutchins and Souza is limited to $6 mil.

There's a wild card here ... punitive damages. In New Mexico, if there's proof of recklessness or wanton misconduct, a jury could award punitive damages, and that could send any judgment into the stratosphere.

It seems obvious there was serious negligence on the set, to say the least. A real gun was used, something gun experts on movie sets say is a clear violation. The gun fired off a fatal live round of ammunition, and live rounds should never be on a movie set. And, the area in the line of fire should have been cleared of people, which it was not.

And, there's more. The gun in question clearly was not adequately inspected before it was handed over to Alec Baldwin. And, as we reported several days ago, some members of the crew were using that gun for target practice -- with real bullets. And, someone may have been doing just that hours before the shooting on the set.

There's another issue ... Front Row would not discuss the terms of the policy with us, but typically there are numerous requirements insurance companies impose and violations of those requirements could allow the company to deny coverage. For instance, given this was a policy to cover a western with various gun scenes, there may be an exclusion if there was live ammo on the set.

The gaffer from the set of 'Rust' who torched producers and the novice armorer over Halyna Hutchins' death is back in Los Angeles. ... and he's got some support waiting for him.

Serge Svetnoy touched down in L.A. Tuesday just a couple days after his scathing Facebook post squarely blaming Hannah Reed and others working behind the scenes for allowing this tragedy to unfold on set.

As you can see, Serge was greeted by a friend ... who was ready to welcome him with open arms. The 2 embraced in a hug, although the guy still looked pretty somber, and understandably so.

He also appears to be one of the first crew members back on the West Coast after last week's shooting incident in New Mexico. It could be a sign of where cops are in the investigation too -- presumably, the authorities are starting to cut people loose.

Like we told you ... Serge wasn't shy about sharing his criticism of what went wrong and whose actions he thinks cost Halyna her life. He explicitly mentioned the 24-year-old weapons expert ... while also throwing around words like "negligence" and "unprofessionalism."

In addition to his comments, he also posted what's believed to be one of the last photographs of her ... shortly before she died.

She and the rest of the crew were rehearsing a scene in a church, where Alec Baldwin was in full costume ... and where he ultimately did a cross-draw motion and fired the gun, not knowing it had a live round of ammo in one of the chambers. Serge says he was holding Halyna, and was covered in her blood before she was airlifted.

So far, there've been no criminal charges brought forth -- but the investigation is still underway, and this is far from over.

NBA YoungBoy is finally sprung from jail -- after several months behind bars in his federal gun case -- but he had to drop some serious coin to make it happen.

The rapper's attorneys, Drew Findling and Andre Belanger, tell TMZ ... NBA YB was released on bond Tuesday after forking over $500k in cash. The St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office, which had the rapper in custody since March, confirms they've handed him his walking papers.

YoungBoy might be rejoicing about regaining his freedom until he stands trial ... but he's on a tight leash. He's gotta keep his nose clean -- or else he'll land right back in a cell.

His legal team tells us a condition of YoungBoy's release includes home confinement in Utah, where his location is being monitored. How exactly they'll keep track of him isn't quite clear --  whether it's electronic or physical surveillance -- but we're told the authorities are keeping tabs.

TMZ broke the story ... cops had to use a K-9 unit here in L.A. to wrangle YoungBoy after he allegedly evaded a traffic stop and spurred a police chase.

Things are getting tenser than a lethal game of Red Light, Green Light -- "Squid Game" creator Hwang Dong-hyuk heard LeBron James bashing the show's ending loud and clear ... and fired back by clowning his panned 'Space Jam' movie!!

James was heavily critical of the Netflix series' final scene ... discussing his dissatisfaction with Anthony Davis in front of reporters after a preseason game earlier this month (don't worry, we won't spoil it here ... but seriously, why haven't you watched yet?!?)

Hwang was asked about James' review in a recent interview with The Guardian ... and his response is clearly dissing the King's recent "Space Jam: A New Legacy" flick, which currently has a 26% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

"Have you seen Space Jam 2?" Hwang asked in response to James' comments.

"LeBron James is cool and can say what he wants. I respect that. I'm very thankful he watched the whole series."

So, will Hwang roll out an alternate ending to appease James' critique??? Don't hold your breath.

"But I wouldn't change my ending," he added. "That's my ending. If he has his own ending that would satisfy him, maybe he could make his own sequel. I'll check it out and maybe send him a message saying, 'I liked your whole show, except the ending.'"

A haunting image showing Halyna Hutchins on the set of "Rust" helps paint an eerie picture of the DP's surroundings in her final moments after the fatal accident on set of the Alec Baldwin film.

The photo -- uploaded by the movie's chief electrician Serge Svetnoy -- claims to be the last photo with Halyna on set. Hutchins is wearing a tan beanie with headphones covering her ears.

The setting is what makes the photo so tragic considering it was inside the same church where she was shot and killed after the gun Baldwin was holding fired a live round that struck her in the chest.

According to the search warrant, obtained by TMZ, the fatal scene was supposed to depict Baldwin, sitting in a church pew, pulling his gun from his holster and firing into the camera. The warrant says Baldwin believed he was getting a "cold gun" without ammo from the assistant director, but that was not the case.

In a scathing Facebook post, Svetnoy blamed "negligence and unprofessionalism" on the part of the film's armorer and assistant director for Hutchins' death. He claims he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Halyna during the fatal shot, saying, "I was holding her in my arms while she was dying. Her blood was on my hands."

As we reported, the accident is still under investigation, but a lot of suspicion has been raised about the level of experience armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed brought to the project.

In a podcast recorded last month, Reed claimed she had only recently come off her first film as head armorer and almost didn't take the gig because she felt she wasn't ready.

Jeff Bezos wants to get commerce going in the Milky Way -- something he's more than welcome to do, just so long as he pays Earthling taxes beforehand ... so says Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

We got the U.S. Senator Tuesday in D.C. where our photog asked what she made of Bezos' just-announced plan to get a space business park going via his rocket company, Blue Origin. Liz is totally good with that -- on the condition he ponies up to Uncle Sam first.

Check out this convo ... Sen. Warren says she doesn't care what JB does with his dough, but insists it should be money he has left over AFTER he gets fairly taxed on his wealth.

This is a hot debate right now, as Dems are trying to push through legislation that will see billionaires taxed annually on their unrealized capital gains -- which they say will help fund a lot of what President Biden is trying to accomplish with his infrastructure bill.

The Senator alludes to that here ... saying Bezos doesn't have an annual income that's easily taxable, which is why she says we've gotta be able to tax his overall wealth for true equity.

As you know, Bezos has been in a space race of sorts with other billionaires, who all seem eager to get the hell outta Dodge and conquer a new frontier.

Here's a firm lesson that alligators are NOT the slowpokes they're often made out to be -- especially when they're in their liquid turf ... these bastards are fast and furious!

Check out this wild video of a guy who was swimming in a lake down in Campo Grande, Brazil over the weekend, when he had a freaky run-in with the apex predator that was on his ass as he was trying to swim to shore.

It seems the man had no idea he was being scoped out by the gator -- but once he did realize he had company ... he tried to book it.

As he's approaching the shore, you see the alligator torpedo its way toward the poor dude -- and it actually takes a chomp on his torso, only to release him as he continues to flee. Give credit to this fella for keeping his swim going, 'cause the animal could've easily latched on and taken him under.

Looks like the gator pierced some skin, as the man was indeed bleeding when he emerged. Hard to tell how bad the injury is -- but he's lucky to have walked away in one piece.

Britney Spears has more to get off her chest as it relates to her family -- whom she says have caused irreparable harm ... which she's not going to be quiet about anymore.

The singer took to IG Monday with a not-so-cryptic message ... one that was aimed directly at her blood relatives, it seems. She explains how every person she's ever opened to immediately abandons her in a time of need -- which she finds screwed up and is over with.

She adds, "This message is to my family ... for hurting me deeper than you'll ever know !!! I know the conservatorship is about to be over but I still want justice !!! I'm only 5'4" and I've played the bigger person my entire life ... do you know how hard that is ???"

Unclear who exactly this might be about, per se, but it seems to perhaps be for her younger sister, Jamie Lynn, who's been making headlines of late ... and not for great reasons.

As we've reported ... JLS is taking major heat for releasing a book right on the heels of her older sibling's conservatorship drama, which many find to be exploitative. Britney, too, appears to agree with that -- and has issued a broader warning shot at her brood ... saying they better pray she doesn't do any interviews, where she might really spill the beans.

And, of course, Britney has already expressed anger toward her parents, Jamie and Lynne Spears, so her reference to "family" seems all-inclusive.