Coronavirus

Aaron Rodgers says after contracting COVID this week ... he consulted with Joe Rogan and decided to take ivermectin to fight off the virus on the heels of the podcast host's advice.

The Green Bay Packers star revealed his at-home, coronavirus-fighting plan on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Friday ... saying he decided to down a cocktail of meds similar to the way Rogan did earlier this year after talking with the 54-year-old.

"I've consulted with a now-good friend of mine, Joe Rogan, after he got COVID and I've been doing a lot of the stuff that he recommended in his podcasts and on the phone to me," Rodgers said.

"I've been taking monoclonal antibodies, ivermectin, zinc, vitamin c and d, and HCQ," the NFL player continued, "and I feel pretty incredible."

Rodgers revealed he began feeling COVID symptoms on Tuesday, tested positive for the virus on Wednesday, and felt poorly on Thursday.

The 37-year-old, though, said he's now feeling great.

Rodgers also explained his highly controversial vaccine stance to McAfee and A.J. Hawk ... admitting he did NOT get the shots, despite appearing to say in August he had gotten them.

But, Rodgers said he "didn't lie" -- and explained when he said he was "immunized," he meant he had actually taken steps to naturally help boost his immune system.

As for why he didn't just get the shots ... Rodgers said he's allergic to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines -- and just straight-up didn't want the Johnson & Johnson one due to reported side effects.

He also said even though he's "not some sort of anti-vax, flat-earther" ... he clearly feels the forcing of vaccines on people is not right.

In fact, Rodgers actually quoted Martin Luther King Jr. -- saying, "The great MLK said, 'You have a moral obligation to object to unjust rules and rules that make no sense.'"

Chris Rock's making it clear where he stands in the vaxx/anti-vaxx debate by taking a big swipe at Kyrie Irving ... and he did it in a prime location.

Chris was onstage Wednesday night in Brooklyn along with a bunch of bands and comedians performing at an NFT Week event when he hyped up the crowd by calling out anti-vaxxers. He eased into it with a joke about wearing face masks at concerts, and then simply asked, "Where's my anti-vaxxers at?"

Oddly, the question actually drew some cheers -- NYC requires vaccinations to attend shows like this -- and then Rock hit 'em with ... "You dumb, Kyrie motherf******!!!"

Chris was just a few miles away from Barclays Center, where Kyrie will NOT be playing this season for his Brooklyn Nets -- but his joke still scored laughs from the hometown crowd. Remember, Chris is from Brooklyn ... but he's still a diehard Knicks fan.

Lil Baby, Questlove, Aziz Ansari, and Rich the Kid were some of the other performers -- and after Chris took his shot at Kyrie Irving, he introduced The Strokes.

Aaron Rodgers vs. Patrick Mahomes will now not happen -- at least not this week -- 'cause the Packers star has contracted coronavirus and is now out of Green Bay's game against the Chiefs.

Rodgers tested positive Wednesday, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, and told teammates just minutes ago that he'd be missing Sunday's tilt with K.C.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport added the quarterback is not vaccinated -- and that's why he's already been ruled out of the weekend matchup.

Much-hyped backup Jordan Love -- who the team took in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft -- is expected to start in Rodgers' place.

Rodgers hasn't missed a regular-season start for Green Bay since the 2017 season. In 8 games for this year, he piled up 16 passing TDs and just 6 INTs.

The Packers have been rocked by COVID recently ... just last week, they were without top wideouts Davante Adams and Allen Lazard due to positive tests.

Jason Momoa is killing time as he quarantines after contracting COVID-19 -- but he at least has some good (and skilled) company that'll flip his wig ... not to mention flipping a board.

The "Aquaman" star is isolating at his crib -- this after coming down with the virus following the premiere of his newest flick, "Dune," in London a couple weeks ago. He's got an update for fans ... he's doing alright, and his quarantine buddy is totally shredding.

It looks like Jason is hunkering down with pro skateboarder Erik Ellington ... whom he refers to as his roommate. He threw up a video of the guy doing a kickflip inside the residence ... going from the top of one step down to the kitchen floor, which impressed JM.

Unclear why exactly they're sheltering in place together -- presumably Erik also caught the 'rona while in Jason's company -- but in any case ... they're keeping each other entertained.

BTW, Jason also knows how to shred the gnar ... guy's a seasoned skater himself, and was hitting half pipes during the pandemic last year.

Anyway, check out this video ... besides the sweet tricks going down at his pad, Jason also seems to be ready to roll out a new sneaker he's been working on that's environmentally friendly.

Rev. Jesse Jackson is back in the hospital -- though this time not COVID-related -- instead, for a nasty fall.

Jackson was visiting Howard University in Washington D.C. Monday when his team says he fell and hit his head as he entered a building on campus. Jesse was rushed to a local hospital for a myriad of tests, including a CT scan ... his rep says all results came back normal.

Nonetheless, doctors decided to keep Jackson at the hospital overnight just to be safe.

The 80-year-old has faced some significant health problems as of late. Both he and his wife, Jacqueline, were hospitalized with COVID back in August. Once Jesse -- who was vaccinated -- was released from the hospital, he entered a rehab facility to deal with his Parkinson's disease.

President Biden's press secretary, Jen Psaki, says she's come down with COVID-19 ... but is away from POTUS and has been for several days now.

Psaki revealed Sunday that she'd tested positive for the virus -- this after multiple days of testing negative upon learning people in her household had caught it. She was supposed to hit Europe with JB, but scrapped those plans after learning her family members were sick.

The Press Secretary also notes she was last in contact with Biden on Tuesday ... just before he flew to Rome, where he's currently at for the G20 summit. She notes they were standing at least six feet apart then, and were also wearing masks.

Psaki says, "I am disclosing today's positive test out of an abundance of transparency," adding ... "Thanks to the vaccine, I have only experienced mild symptoms which has enabled me to continue working from home."

She goes on to explain she'll return to the WH after a full 10-day quarantine period, and obviously after a negative test is once again registered.

Jon Bon Jovi was supposed to spend Saturday night on stage, but instead, he spent it in bed ... because of COVID.

Bon Jovi was supposed to perform at the Loews South Beach in Miami Beach, but before the concert began Jon's brother took the stage and told the crowd Jon would not be performing because he tested positive for COVID.

Turns out everyone in the band took a rapid test before the concert and Jon's turned up positive.

A Bon Jovi rep said Jon was fully vaccinated ... unclear, however, if the 59-year-old got a booster.

The rep says he's feeling good, but planned on spending the night in bed. He left Bon Jovi style ... in a yellow Maserati.

As for the concert, the other band members -- all of whom tested negative -- stuck around and played for the crowd.

BTW ... last year Jon's 18-year-old son tested positive for COVID, along with his keyboard player and percussionist.

Ice Cube is saying no to a $9 million payday, because he's not saying yes to getting the COVID-19 vaccine.

The rapper and actor is passing on his role in the upcoming movie, "Oh Hell No," because he refused a request from producers to get the jab ... according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Ice Cube's not only giving up a starring role alongside Jack Black and a chance to film on location in Hawaii -- but he's also giving up the reported $9 mil he would have earned for the flick.

Cube and Jack signed on to the Sony project back in June, and at some point after, producers reportedly put in a request for all cast to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

There's been nary a peep from Ice Cube on the vaccine, at least publicly, but he seems to be taking the pandemic seriously ... he donated face coverings to a college in Oklahoma in August, and raised money for frontline healthcare workers at the beginning of the outbreak by selling shirts picturing him with a mask.

With Ice Cube out, Sony is reportedly looking to find someone to fill his shoes.

Khloe Kardashian and her daughter True are battling COVID together, and both need some time to recover, which means canceled commitments for Khloe.

Khloe announced Friday, "Hi guys I wanted to let you know True and I tested positive for Covid ... Luckily I have been vaccinated so all will be ok. We will be over here in quarantine and following current guidelines."

It's the second time Khloe's had COVID, she revealed in October of last year she had recently recovered from the virus, but had a bad case ... with vomiting, shaking, headaches and hot and cold flashes.

Khloe was just one of several members from the family who have publicly said they've had COVID ... Kanye, Kim and their kids also tested positive in 2020.

Kevin Durant is opening up about the Nets' early-season struggles … admitting that the team misses having their superstar Kyrie Irving out on the floor.

Irving hasn’t been allowed to practice or play at all this season since he’s unvaccinated ... and it doesn’t look like that’s changing any time soon.

The Nets picked up their third loss of the season last night — losing to the Miami Heat at home 106-93 — prompting one reporter to ask KD what’s "missing" with the team’s offense.

"I know what you want me to say," Durant joked before getting real. "Yeah, we do miss Kyrie. We do. He’s a part of our team."

"For the most part we been generating great shots, we been getting into the paint. It’s a matter of us knocking them down. I think it’ll come."

Brooklyn’s offense has clearly struggled without KI ... the squad is currently 25th in points per game in the NBA.

Supporters of Irving took to the streets this past weekend to advocate that the Brooklyn Nets star be allowed to play … and looking at this Nets offense through 5 games, it might explain why they went so hard.

Instead of catching the Holy Ghost, one man caught these hands -- he defied the priest by storming the altar without wearing a face mask ... and the other churchgoers gave him a beatdown.

The video -- shot Sunday inside a church in Lakewood, WA -- shows the man approach the altar, and the priest immediately identifies him as a problem, saying he was trespassing and needed to leave immediately. Words didn't stop him, but when he got up on the altar ... several church members rushed out of their pews to manhandle him.

Fists were flying, and several guys fell to the ground ... eventually, someone calls 911 and the man was arrested for trespassing.

As for what led up to the incident, local station KIRO obtained a letter from Father Paul Brunet to worshippers explaining the history. Brunet says problems started with the man last month after he threatened the safety of church staff and other parishioners.

Brunet claims he had a meeting with the man to help fix things, but they only got worse ... and the church had no option but to ban him from the property. The guy still showed up ... and that's what you see playing out in the video.

Van Jones is very disturbed by what he saw play out at the Barclays Center -- protestors storming the building a la the Jan. 6 insurrection -- and he says there's a danger in these scenes becoming commonplace.

The podcast host and esteemed news commentator joined "TMZ Live" Monday and told us what it was like to be there in person when demonstrators clashed with security and bowled over barricades outside the NBA arena.

The protest, which some are comparing to the Capitol riot, was against the NYC vaccine mandate, and in support of Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving ... who is sidelined because he's not vaccinated.

Much like the U.S. Capitol, Van says the arena had to go on lockdown ... and he says it's another sign the country needs to get to a better place.

Van thinks society is looking for the next big division, and with Donald Trump out of the White House, the big catalyst is now the COVID-19 vaccine.

He's got a few ideas about what's behind the massive divisions we're seeing across the country ... but he says we're heading towards an uncivilized society if mob attacks on buildings become normalized.

Kyrie Irving has some in his corner who are willing to go to war for him over his vaccine stance -- and we mean that literally ... 'cause they were doing just that this weekend.

A group of protestors hit the streets Sunday to advocate for the Brooklyn Nets star, who's sidelined right now since he's not vaccinated ... which is preventing him playing with the team whatsoever, due to NYC's vaccine mandate and the team's wider policy.

Well, these folks think it's BS -- and apparently were itching to get inside to let Nets officials know first-hand, 'cause they were attempting to storm the Barclays Center's front entrance ... shortly before tipoff against the Hornets.

Check out this footage ... demonstrators clashed with security, and bowled over barricades.

It sounds like the chaos only lasted for a short time, and eventually ... cops and security got it under control. So, it appears to have been a flash mob type deal. Still though ... pretty damn intense for however long they were there. Things escalated quickly, as you can see.

Meanwhile, it doesn't seem Kyrie is caving to the pressure -- he's been mostly laying low since making his POV clear ... namely, that he's against mandates, not vaccines.

A pharmacist denied a guy ivermectin, despite the man having a doctor's note, and put his foot down ... saying they're not giving the drug out for COVID purposes, period.

No word on where this happened or when, but it seems somewhat recent. Check out the video -- you see the patient trying to pick up his prescription of ivermectin, which the pharmacist flat out refuses to fill ... noting it's not FDA approved for the virus.

The customer is adamant that it was prescribed to him by a licensed physician, and that the pharmacist is breaking the law by overriding his doctor's orders -- but the pharmacist tells him to kick rocks, and to complain to whoever he feels he needs to complain to.

While the pharmacist does recognize it is a legit drug approved for certain things -- like parasitic illnesses -- it has NOT yet gotten the official green light by the feds ... something the man tries to push back on by saying it's an "off-label" treatment.

The pharmacist won't budge, though ... and the video cuts out before we can see how this headbutt ended. Presumably, the man left that location empty-handed ... but it brings up an interesting dilemma.

For starters, it's unclear how the pharmacist even knew what the guy needed ivermectin for -- there's no indication if the Rx noted it was for COVID, or if the pharmacist simply assumed/deduced it. The man sorta gives it away by not pushing back on his premise.

There's also the issue of whether a pharmacist can legally do this -- refusing to fill a prescription -- and the answer is yes ... in some states, that is. California is one example.

Ed Sheeran is hitting the pause button, because he says he's tested positive for COVID-19 ... which disrupts a few things in his immediate future.

The singer made the announcement Sunday on Instagram, writing ... "Hey guys. Quick note to tell you that I’ve sadly tested positive for Covid, so I’m now self-isolating and following government guidelines."

He adds, "It means that I’m now unable to plough ahead with any in person commitments for now, so I’ll be doing as many of my planned interviews/performances I can from my house. Apologies to anyone I’ve let down. Be safe everyone x"

It sounds like the guy will be well enough to carry on with some scheduled responsibilities -- of which we're sure there's quite a few, seeing how Ed's new album is due out next week.

Speaking of one of those commitments, 'SNL' just announced yesterday that Ed would be the musical guest alongside host Kieran Culkin for Nov. 6's episode -- but it's unclear if he'll be able to make that or not ... it's 13 days away, and he could presumably be well by then.

Ed is also supposed to be appearing on "The Voice" this week as a musical mentor -- but they seem to have taped his segment well before this diagnosis. No word if he was planning on making an in-person visit as well -- but if so, that's almost certainly off now.

Travis Tritt took a hard-line stance on performing at places requiring anything to help stop the spread of COVID-19 -- and in return, he's singing at a playoff MLB game.

The country star is set to belt out the National Anthem Saturday at Truist Park, where the Braves are hosting the Dodgers for Game 6 of the NLCS. It's a game that'll be aired on TBS, and which will obviously get mainstream coverage.

Tritt made the surprise announcement that he'd been tapped late Friday night, writing ... "FYI - I will be singing our National Anthem for Game 6 of the NLCS in Atlanta tonight between the @Braves and the @Dodgers," adding an American flag emoji at the end.

There's been no explanation for this choice on the part of the Braves -- but it's telling considering Tritt has been in the news of late for publicly stating he would not play shows at venues that had any COVID mandates whatsoever -- including vaccine mandates, negative test mandates or even mask mandates ... and canceling shows to that end.

He recently went on Fox News and said he found COVID protocols discriminatory and unnecessary in many cases ... which is why he was putting his foot down, a la Eric Clapton and other musicians who've taken similar positions.

BTW, Truist Park doesn't have any mandates in place besides for those stepping on the field -- and, apparently, Travis will be performing from somewhere behind home plate.