Controversial S#!T

"The Real Friends of WeHo" star Joey Zauzig is clapping back on behalf of his co-star Todrick Hall ... urging folks not to judge a book by its cover, despite calls to boycott the new MTV show over Todrick's casting.

We got Joey out in L.A. Friday and asked him about Todrick, who's under fire for allegedly not being a good guy. Todrick's been accused in the past of not paying rent on his houses and stiffing former employees on money owed to them. People on social media are calling for a boycott of the show because of these accusations.

Joey tells us anyone boycotting the show because of Todrick's participation is simply a "sore loser." He says the best folks were chosen for the show ... and that includes Todrick.

Joey acknowledged the controversy surrounding the former "Celebrity Big Brother" contestant ... saying there could be some truth to everything but he chose to give Todrick a clean slate after filming the show with him and he has no regrets about it.

Joey doubled down saying ... Todrick even has receipts to prove all the accusations aren't what people claim. He says everyone else should give him a clean slate and he believes that'll happen once folks get to see him in a different light on the new series.

Former "Zoey 101" star Alexa Nikolas says moving forward with a reboot of the show is a slap in the face, given the alleged abuse she and others endured at Nickelodeon.

We got Alexa as she was protesting outside Tri Star in West Hollywood -- where she says she was traumatized while making the hit show -- and she got candid about her misgivings toward old costars participating in the new version.

Alexa tells us the fact the reboot's even being produced disregards those who have come forward to speak about alleged abuse, and it sends a poor message to survivors everywhere ... not just at Nickelodeon.

She didn't hide her contempt for those involved in the show, telling us they're supporting a network she views as complicit in childhood trauma.

She says she wishes her former castmates were protesting with her ... or at the very least, supporting her for speaking out. Now, she just hopes they'll eventually come around to advocate for survivors and safe working conditions.

As we've told you, Alexa has been religiously protesting alleged abuse from higher-ups at the company. She's alleged she was pressured to drink at 18, got unwanted massages from an exec and was offered hush money.

ICYMI, there's been talk about bringing the show back. And, Nickelodeon reportedly announced production for a follow-up "Zoey 101" movie that has started this month with Jamie Lynn Spears as the exec producer.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries doesn't think Rep. George Santos should set foot in the Capitol again -- but he says it's on Republicans to give the freshman legislator the ol' heave ho after getting caught in so many lies.

The new Democratic leader in the House was on the west coast Friday ... we got him outside WeHo Bistro, and asked about all the heat Rep. Santos is getting, from both sides of the aisle.

Hakeem made it clear he views Santos as a GOP mess, and it's on them to clean it up after backing his campaigns, getting him to D.C. ... and "now the American people are stuck with this fraud."

As you know ... Santos has already been caught in a web of lies after winning the election in November -- he's admitted to lying about his education, work history and family heritage.

He's also accused of scamming a homeless Navy vet out of money earmarked to save his dying dog -- though the Congressman denies it, whatever that's worth.

Earlier this week, a person claiming to be an old friend of Santos posted a 2008 pic which they claim is him in drag at a pride event in Brazil.

Again, Santos denied he's ever been a drag queen and said the media "continues to make outrageous claims about my life."

Members of his own party are calling on Santos to step down, however, Republican leadership in Congress continues to back him.

Authorities in Colorado say Derek Wolfe followed all the steps necessary in his hunt of a mountain lion this week ... confirming to TMZ Sports the former NFL player's killing of the animal was legal.

A spokesperson for Colorado Parks and Wildlife tells us ... Wolfe did all that was required of him in order to lawfully take down the big cat in Grant earlier this week.

According to the CPW, Wolfe obtained his mountain lion hunting license and is "in good standing" with the org. It also said Wolfe checked all the boxes necessary -- such as properly reporting the kill -- to make it all above board.

Wolfe himself insisted on his "The Drive" podcast that he did nothing wrong ... explaining, as he did in his initial post about the kill, that the male mountain lion was a menace to neighboring communities prior to its death.

"He was hiding under this lady's porch down the road," Wolfe said of what initially made him set out to kill the beast. "She told us, 'Please get rid of him. He killed my dog last year.'"

Wolfe added, "I love hunting deer and elk, and mountain lions kill deer and elk, and mature male mountain lions kill the cubs of female mountain lions to get them to go back into heat."

"I feel like I am doing my part by taking care of some of these Toms. It is not easy."

Wolfe said after an hours-long hunt for the animal, he eventually shot and killed it with a bow and arrow. He said the big cat was massive -- weighing around 200 pounds ... and spanning the entirety of his 6-foot-6 frame.

"That thing can kill anybody," Wolfe said.

Dakota Johnson is no fan of Armie Hammer, and made that perfectly clear when she dropped jokes about his cannibalism allegations ... and while the Sundance crowd seemed amused, she's also getting some backlash.

The actress took a few digs at Armie while presenting an award to "Call Me by Your Name" director Luca Guadagnino at the famous Park City, UT film festival.

Armie starred in the 2017 movie and Dakota joked ... "Luca had asked me to play the role of the peach, but our schedules conflicted. Thank God, because then I would have been another woman that Armie Hammer tried to eat."

In the movie, Timothee Chalamet's character performs a sex act on a peach, which Armie's character later discovers.

Dakota wasn't done there, she also told the crowd, "It's been 5 years since that film premiered here, and Luca hasn't stopped taking us to exciting places. Who knew cannibalism was so popular?"

Luca's latest film, "Bones and All," stars Timothee and it's about cannibalism ... and Armie's infamously been dogged by allegations he gets off on cannibalistic fetishes, which he vehemently denies.

Also relevant, is the fact LAPD has investigated some of those allegations for more than 2 years now, and Hammer has not been charged with a single crime. Dakota's getting online backlash from people who support Armie, and also from those who believe his accusers. The criticism is she was unfair to him, legally speaking ... or insensitive to the women.

A classic lose-lose.

Lil Tjay is turning his recent run-in with NYPD into artistic content ... splicing footage of the arrest into the music video for his new single, "Clutchin My Strap."

The new track finds Tjay detailing his PTSD from being shot last summer, and how he and his crew will mob with guns going forward!!!

In addition to clips of the arrest, director JLShotThat mixes clips of concert performances with scenes of Tjay making gun hand signals to drive home his point!!!

The Trench Kid relives the June 2022 shooting with cinematic flair, rapping on the track, "Whаt уоu dіd tо mе І tооk ѕеvеn, уоu tооk thrее/Вut thеѕе flеѕh wоundѕ bеttеr thаn а bullеt tо thе ѕkі/Аllеgеdlу, ’саuѕе І dоn’t еvеn rеаllу knоw whаt hарреnеd І’m јuѕt rарріn’, but І bеt І’m ’bоut thаt асtіоn."

That notion to arm oneself illegally is allegedly what derailed Tjay's attempt at a video collab with Ice Spice earlier this week.

TMZ Hip Hop broke the story ... Tjay's attorney Dawn Florio thinks the rapper was subjected to an illegal search on January 15 when he and several others were arrested for gun possession ahead of the video shoot with Ice Spice.

He's since posted bond and is back to updating streaming services with more music about blickies and being loaded on drugs.

Brazilian soccer star Dani Alves was reportedly detained Friday in Spain ... where he's being held on sexual abuse charges.

Alves, 39, is accused of inappropriately touching a woman under her clothes without consent (in Spain, sexual assault can cover anything from groping to rape) in a Barcelona nightclub on New Year's Eve, according to reports.

The woman filed a report after the alleged incident ... and once local police were made aware of the situation, they took witness statements.

Alves -- a champion with several clubs, including Barcelona, Juventus and Paris-Saint German -- has denied any wrongdoing, claiming he's never even met the alleged victim.

"I would like to deny everything first," Alves said. "I was there, in that location, with more people, having a good time. Everybody knows that I love to dance. Having a good time, but without invading the space of others."

"I'm very sorry, but I don't know who that young lady is. I don't know who she is. I've never seen her in my life."

Bobby Shmurda is officially in the pest control business ... at least in the rap game, where he's continuing the rollout of his anti-snitch song.

The GS9 rapper previewed a new music video on Thursday dressed as an exterminator and surrounded by a swarm of scantily clad assistants!!!

Sources close to the video production tell TMZ Hip Hop ... the song's title has been shortened to "Rats" and it's produced by PGlo.

We're also hearing the track will be the launchpad for a new project from Bobby, creating a ripple of new swag and energy.

Bobby's on the indie circuit now ... his last joint dropped back in October, and he's been battling sample clearances and blackballing on Instagram.

He sure picked the right topic to rap about though -- snitching has been a hot topic since Gunna took a plea deal and got sprung from jail.

Joe Exotic is speaking out about his alleged 2020 beatdown at the hands of 8 correction officers in an Oklahoma jail.

The "Tiger King" star released a new audio clip on Twitter, explaining what allegedly happened to him -- in grisly detail -- during an apparent phone convo from behind bars. The clip is from the "Lauren Interviews" podcast.

Joe angrily says, "They beat the f*** out of me, 8 guards, tied me to a chair butt naked, put me in a shower so long that I blacked out and I woke up with skin off my arms from the straps."

As we reported, Joe claimed in court docs that he was sexually assaulted while tied to a chair and beaten by jail guards with his arm flesh removed. Joe was petitioning-then President Donald Trump to pardon him in 2020 after he was convicted and sentenced to 21 years in prison.

The alleged assault occurred at the Grady County Jail in Oklahoma, where Joe was being held during his federal murder-for-hire trial. At the time, a rep for the jail declined to comment, but a law enforcement source told us Joe made the whole thing up ... correction officials found no proof of an attack on any of the facility's recorded cameras.

Andy Murray was so pissed that he couldn't take a piss during a marathon match at the Australian Open on Thursday night ... he unloaded on the chair ump, calling her refusal of a potty break a straight-up "joke."

Murray and Thanasi Kokkinakis battled for over FIVE HOURS at the famed tennis tournament in Melbourne ... and just the before the match went to its fifth set, Murray asked to hit the toilet.

The problem? He had already been once previously during the contest -- so, the ump refused his request.

And, that's when Murray snapped.

"Do you know something?" Murray said as it neared 4 AM in Australia. "I respect the rules. It's so disrespectful that the tournament has us out here until three, f***ing four o'clock in the morning and we're not allowed to go take a piss."

Murray continued, "It's a joke. It is a joke. And you know it as well. It's disrespectful. It's disrespectful to you, it's disrespectful to the ball children. It's disrespectful to the players and we're not allowed to go to the toilet. It's ridiculous."

Former No. 1-ranked tennis player Andy Roddick agreed with Murray ... writing on Twitter during the match, "This is just so dumb."

Murray somehow recovered despite not being allowed to relieve himself ... earning a 4-6, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-3, 7-5 win that started on Thursday night and officially ended at 4:05 AM on Friday.

Rep. George Santos has yet another past alias, at least according to an ex-friend in Brazil who's posted a photo of him in drag ... which is interesting because Santos has spoken out against drag shows in America.

The ex-friend, Eula Rochard, posted a pic from 2008 which she says shows Santos as a drag queen named "Kitara." Eula told a website called The Handbasket her experience with Santos was that he lied a lot ... a now oft-told tale about the embattled freshman U.S. Congressman from NY.

Eula says they met when Santos was 16 or 17, and going by the name Anthony. He's already copped to previous aliases of Anthony Devolder and Anthony Zabrovsky.

As for his "Kitara" days, Eula says the pic was taken at a Pride Parade, but she says he was not a pro drag performer -- "George did not have the glamour for that.” Ouch!

The more relevant point here is that present-day Santos -- who is openly gay -- has backed Florida's Don't Say Gay bill, and aligned himself with Republicans who claim drag queens and drag shows groom children.

Eula says she posted the pic after seeing Santos on TV, and friends doubted her when she said the Congressman and "Kitara" were the same person.

The "Kitara" pic would add a new wrinkle of hypocrisy to the tapestry of Santos' lies. As we've reported, he's already admitted to fabricating details of his education, previous jobs and family heritage. He's also been accused of falsely claiming his mother was in the World Trade Center on 9/11.

While some members of Congress have called for Santos to resign in light of all the lies that came out since he was elected in November, he's refused to do so ... and GOP leadership is still backing him, even appointing him to committees.

We've reached out to Santos' office for comment on the "Kitara" pic, but no word back yet.

Navy veteran Richard Osthoff choked up while claiming Rep. George Santos scammed him out of money intended to keep his dying service pooch alive ... he says the dog saved his life.

Osthoff recalled his alleged history with the freshman legislator from NY -- who's already fessed up to lying about his work experience and education -- in an interview with CNN, getting emotional as he told his story ... with his late dog's ashes in a box next to him.

The Navy vet says his pooch, Sapphire, saved his life when he was in a dark place after first getting out of the service ... and he's convinced he wouldn't be alive today without the dog.

Osthoff says Santos offered to help get the dog a life-saving medical procedure several years ago ... when Santos was going by his alias, Anthony Devolder ... but says he never saw a dime of the $3,000 Santos raised online.

Instead, Osthoff claims he actually lost money in his dealings with Santos ... another blow to the homeless Navy vet who says he watched his dog die instead of being saved.

For his part, Santos is denying the allegations ... claiming he has dozens of folks who would go on the record saying Santos saved their dogs and cats.

But Osthoff says he won't believe Santos without proof.

Police are investigating a pretty horrifying clip of cops pummeling a woman ... and we're told it all started after a complaint about lack of cheese on a Big Mac.

In the vid, you can see 2 officers attempting to detain Latinka Hancock Monday in Butler Township, Ohio. After some arguing, you can see one of the cops punch her in the head multiple times before getting the cuffs on her.

Police now say they're looking into the incident caught on camera.

Hancock's attorney Michael Wright of Wright & Schulte tells TMZ ... it all went down after Hancock ordered and paid for a Big Mac at McDonald's with extra cheese -- but she claims the order didn't come with the extra cheese.

Wright says employees ended up calling the cops on Hancock after things got heated ... and insists she was confronted by Butler Township PD after trying to leave.

Antonio Brown is deflecting responsibility for a sexually-explicit private picture shared on his Snapchat ... claiming his account was hacked.

The ex-NFL superstar broke his silence on the situation Wednesday ... saying he's working with the social media platform to resolve the issue.

As we previously reported, AB's account posted a picture of his ex, Chelsie Kyriss, performing oral sex on him in bed ... and the image was shared all over the Internet.

Chelsie addressed the photo shortly after it went public ... saying she was aware of the post and reported it to Snap.

Chelsie also stated she had previously asked AB to keep their past relationship private ... but he's refused.

A spokesperson for the platform told TMZ Sports AB's account was suspended and an investigation was underway, citing Community Guidelines that "prohibit sexually explicit content and bullying or harassment of any kind."

Given AB's previous Snap activity -- including posting fake nude images of Gisele Bundchen -- it's entirely possible he is attempting to cover his ass ... considering almost all states have laws on the books to punish people who post revenge porn.

But, if his account was seriously hacked, it's a truly unfortunate situation for everyone involved.

The Navy isn't gonna be happy with this.

Stephen A. Smith had a BOLD take this week, but it wasn't about whether Dak Prescott is elite ... it was his reaction to Rihanna performing the Super Bowl halftime show -- simply saying, "she ain't Beyoncé."

The ESPN personality made the comment during his appearance on "The Sherri Show" Wednesday ... claiming it's no shade to RiRi, but will most certainly come across that way with the singer's diehard fanbase.

"Rihanna's music is fantastic," SAS said during the interview. "She's great. She's a sister. I love her dearly, I listen to her music, I'm gonna support her 'til the cows come home."

"I'm just telling you, for me, there's Beyoncé and there's everybody else. Just like there's Michael Jackson and there's everybody else."

Smith says he isn't NOT excited to see Rihanna do her thing ... but makes it clear there's only room for one at the top.

"Ladies and gentlemen, [Rihanna is] a lot of things. She's spectacular actually and congratulations on new mamahood. There's one thing she's not -- she ain't Beyoncé."

SAS says he mentioned Beyoncé because the icon did the SB XLVII show in 2013 without the likes of Coldplay and Bruno Mars ... although she did have support from her former Destiny's Child groupmates, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.

Here's the thing, though -- Rihanna could certainly do her gig alone as well ... as her show has been completely under wraps since it was announced.

Smith goes on to explain his stance ... comparing the situation to the show's host.

"I like television," he added. "I like a lot of talent out there. There's some spectacular females in television, I just want to say that. Everybody ain't Sherri. That's not throwing shading on them. That's appreciating their greatness but understanding, there's levels!"

Bottom line, both Rihanna and Beyoncé are incredibly successful and talented ... so there's really no need to pit them against each other. But, Stephen A. is entitled to his opinion.

The whole interview airs Wednesday ... check your local listings.

Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov refused to show up for his team's warmups on Tuesday night ... boycotting Philadelphia's decision to have its players wear rainbow-colored jerseys that supported the LGBTQ+ community.

Provorov, who ultimately ended up playing in the game after the Flyers switched back to their normal uniforms, said after the contest he made the decision due to his Russian Orthodox beliefs.

"I respect everybody and I respect everybody's choices," the 26-year-old said. "My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion. That's all I'm going to say."

Reporters attempted to ask Provorov further questions about the decision ... but he shut them down, saying, "Did you not hear what I just said? Can you respect that?"

Flyers head coach John Tortorella, meanwhile, seemed to back his player's choice ... telling media members after the game he never once considered not playing Provorov, despite the pregame protest.

"It's one thing I respect about Provy," the 64-year-old manager said. "He's always true to himself. And, so, that's where we're at with that."

The Flyers opted to wear the pregame kits -- as well as wrap their sticks with rainbow-colored tape -- in order to promote inclusivity in a sport that's historically struggled with diversity. Philly auctioned off its players' pregame items after the game, donating proceeds to groups who are helping grow hockey in diverse communities. Provorov was the only Flyer who didn't have memorabilia up in the auction.

The team spoke generically about the issue in a statement just before the game ... saying, "The Philadelphia Flyers organization is committed to inclusivity and is proud to support the LGBTQ+ community. Many of our players are active in their support of local LGBTQ+ organizations, and we were proud to host our annual Pride Night again this year. The Flyers will continue to be strong advocates for inclusivity and the LGBTQ+ community."

The NHL has yet to comment on it all.

Provorov ended up playing a team-high 22:45 minutes in the game against the Ducks, which Philadelphia won, 5-2.