Controversial S#!T

Vin Diesel's attorney Bryan Freedman's trial strategy is clear ... if ya can't beat them in the courtroom, beat them up outside of it.

The celebrity lawyer -- who is representing Vin in a sexual assault lawsuit filed against him by a former assistant on the "Fast Five" set -- is being called out in documents filed to compel Diesel's deposition.

According to the documents ... the plaintiff Asta Jonasson's attorney, Matthew Hale, was set to depose a third-party witness on June 23, but before it began he met with one of Diesel's other attorneys -- Sean Hardy -- to discuss why Diesel couldn't make it to his own deposition on June 24 and June 25.

CM Punk is revisiting his infamous tweet to WWE Superstar The Miz about his involvement in the company's shows in Saudi Arabia ... issuing an apology to the fans and saying "everything is a lesson learned."

Punk's initial comment came as a response to Miz in a heated exchange in 2019 ... with the former telling the latter to "Go suck a blood money covered d*** in Saudi Arabia you f***ing dork."

Fast forward to Friday -- Punk took part in the Night of Champions kickoff show in Riyadh ... and the home crowd certainly didn't forget his past words -- with folks in attendance booing him as he made his entrance.

3:25 PM PT -- Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to TMZ ... “Luis Hipolito was arrested for ASSAULTING an ICE law enforcement officer. Andrea Guadalupe Velez was arrested for impeding an arrest after she forcefully obstructed an ICE officer by making physical contact with him. Secretary Noem has been clear: if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Our ICE officers are facing a 500 percent increase in assaults against them while they carry out enforcement operations. These U.S. citizens actions kept ICE law enforcement from arresting the target illegal alien of their operation.”

Several law enforcement officers -- including at least one wearing ICE gear -- tackled a U.S. citizen to the ground and put their knees on his back after he allegedly punched an ICE agent in the face.

The incident went down Tuesday ... with bystanders recording multiple men -- including one wearing a "Police ICE" vest -- slamming a man in a white T-shirt and black pants to the asphalt, pushing his face into the curb as they wrestle to handcuff him.

It takes some time for the group to fully take him down ... and, at different times, the agents take turns putting their knees into the suspect's back -- while onlookers scream at them.

'Queen of Versailles' star Jackie Siegel is not here for the Kristin Chenoweth National Anthem slander -- she’s backing her girl hard, saying the Broadway legend who plays her on stage is talented as hell!

In fact, when TMZ caught up with Jackie outside the Beverly Hills Hotel on Tuesday, she told us there wasn't a single complaint when she and her squad heard Kristin belt the National Anthem. If anything, they were shocked by how long she held those notes and how high she soared.

It runs deeper ... Jackie says it’s Kristin’s voice that’s helping her survive one of the darkest chapters of her life -- losing both her sister to an overdose and husband David Siegel this past April.

Not all Venetians are losing sleep over Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez tying the knot in their city -- in fact, TikToker and proud local Giulia Raffaello is welcoming the whole circus with open arms.

Giulia joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" to point out ... this isn’t the first celeb wedding Venice has hosted, and when done right, these events breathe life into the floating city. Think support for small businesses, jobs for locals and a rare spotlight on forgotten Venetian gems.

While critics and protestors are up in arms over Bezos' billions, Giulia says the focus should be on what’s really impacting Venice day to day -- not a couple dropping serious cash and lots of good intentions for local citizens.

And about all those heavily scheduled wedding events? Giulia’s betting the merchants of Venice ... boat drivers, flower vendors and other community pros are already in the mix.

Fireworks on "TMZ Live" during a segment on President Trump with special guest D.L. Hughley ... and things got racial, explicit, nasty and extremely personal.

D.L. was ripping Trump for tearing up Barack Obama's deal with Iran and scoffing at the idea of Trump getting the Nobel Peace Prize when our Michael Babcock joined the conversation and asked the comedian what Trump would have to do to get some props ... and things escalated very quickly.

The heated back-and-forth on Trump's presidency, in general, quickly shifted to a convo about race -- with D.L. asking Babcock why Trump's changing military base names to honor Confederates?

Ezra Miller's been out of the public eye for a little while, but they claimed to be contemplating a comeback during the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.

The thing is, they're likely going to have a rough road back to the good graces of the public, as they've become notable for their erratic behavior over the past few years.

We're going to take a look back at what stained the name of the star of "The Flash" ... and what might be in store for their future in Hollywood.

R. Kelly's fiancée says her family's telling a bunch of lies about her ... insisting she's not a victim or sex slave despite their concern.

Joycelyn Savage released a video denying the claims Sunday evening ... hitting back at her family after they told us they don't support R. Kelly's pardon push 'cause he's never taken accountability for his actions, and she's still under his thumb.

Savage says she and R. Kelly have been together for 10 years -- engaged for the last three -- and, they want to get married and start a family together.

Johnny Depp says the industry used him as the #MeToo test case ... likening himself to a "crash test dummy" in a rambling new interview.

The embattled actor sat down for an interview with The Times ... and, he was asked numerous questions about his relationship with Amber Heard -- and, his excommunication from Hollywood circles.

Depp says he feels he was a "crash test dummy" for the movement ... pointing out he was taken to task before even allegations against Harvey Weinstein came out. Weinstein was found guilty of sexual assault in a retrial just earlier this month.

President Donald Trump's announcement that the United States attacked Iran drew strong reactions from around Washington, D.C. ... and, they didn't always follow party lines.

As you know ... POTUS took to social media to reveal the U.S. military dropped a "full payload" of bombs on three nuclear facilities in the Middle Eastern country.

While the president called the attack a total success, outrage sparked among Democrats like Bernie Sanders -- who called the action "unconstitutional" and shared a video of his supporters at a rally after he told them of the attack.

Karen Read's defense attorneys are arguing cops framed her for John O'Keefe's death ... but, Massachusetts law enforcement is calling BS -- saying they did everything by the book, even though Read's walking free.

The State Police Association of Massachusetts released a statement about the case Saturday -- a few days after Read was found not guilty of murder and manslaughter.

The association sends condolences to O'Keefe's family and adds that the org. accepts the outcome of Read's trial ... but, they're not apologizing for their police work.

Father's Day should radically change ... it should be a celebration of the men who populate our world rather than to dismiss them as lame and useless ... so says Bill Maher.

The fatherless host of "Real Time" brings receipts ... a slew of TV shows and movies that lambast dads for being men -- men, who are treated with contempt and ridicule, and not just by women but by their own kind!

Bill meanders down a laundry list of things that were invented by men, including the all-important toilet. Seriously, the things he mentions have changed and improved our lives.

Riley Gaines and Simone Biles ... working together?! Could happen, according to the former All-American swimmer herself, who tells TMZ Sports she'd "absolutely" be open to the idea.

Of course, this comes on the heels of the two athletes' social media dust-up earlier this month ... which culminated with the 7x Olympic gold medalist apologizing to the former University of Kentucky swim star for likening her physical stature to that of a man while the women debated trans athletes' participation in youth girls' sports.

We spoke to Riley, a political activist and host of Outkick's "Gaines For Girls" podcast, where we asked her if she'd be down to team up with Biles.

Chris Brown's providing some shock factor here ... because there's a viral image coming out of a recent meet and greet ... and he's got his hands wrapped around a woman's neck.

Breezy had no issue posing for a photo with a well-paying fan who seemingly asked him to get handsy with her and glare menacingly into her eyes ... despite a long history of domestic violence convictions and allegations.

As you can see, CB has his right hand grasping the heavily tattooed woman's neck as she straddles him in a chair. He's also got an intense look on his face.

11 AM PT -- We just found out what Karen Read and her crew ordered at her celebratory steak dinner last night -- and it was a serious feast.

A staffer at Mastro’s Ocean Club tells TMZ the group dug into multiple seafood towers, a spread of sliced steaks -- including bone-in ribeyes and bone-in filets -- and wrapped things up with butter cake, chocolate cake, and key lime pie.

Another source tells us the 3-hour-long dinner featured lobster, mashed potatoes, and asparagus ... with each guest ordering their own alcoholic drinks

Now that’s an order!

Karen Read celebrated her huge victory in court Wednesday at one of the finest steakhouses in Massachusetts ... she was as happy as a clam -- and so was her dad!

Read showed up last night at Mastro's Ocean Club in the Boston seaport to gnaw on a big juicy steak and other yummy delicacies following her acquittal in her retrial for the 2022 murder of her police officer boyfriend, John O'Keefe, and two other charges, including motor vehicle manslaughter. But, Read was found guilty on a lesser charge of driving under the influence and handed a sentence of a year on probation.

As Read, her dad and her lawyers arrived at the restaurant, a bunch of journalists gathered outside and began hurling questions at Karen. One of the reporters asked how she was feeling ... and Read cracked a big smile, saying, "Happy. I'm happy, thank you."

Alan Ritchson's getting a taste of presidential shine -- and, of course, hate -- after kicking it with Joe and Hunter Biden on the set of "Reacher" and sharing it with the internet. As Julia Roberts put it ... big mistake. Huge.

The jacked-up action star is especially pumped about getting to host Prez Biden for a visit while filming his hit Prime Video series. Alan was grinning from ear to ear in a bunch of pics and videos he got with the former POTUS and his son.

He said it was a "privilege and honor to meet the Biden family. They couldn’t have been more lovely. Kind, joyful, gracious and present."