Disney

Joshua Bassett says fame came with a dark side he never saw coming ... revealing his substance abuse spiraled so badly at one point, he believes he shouldn't have survived it.

In an appearance on the "More Life with Carl Radke" podcast, the former Disney star gets brutally honest about a chapter of his life that was happening behind the scenes while his career was taking off.

Joshua says things reached a breaking point when he was 23, admitting ... "It should have killed me, the level of substance."

Jake Short is owning up to a resurfaced podcast clip that's sparked backlash online ... admitting he made a "disrespectful, juvenile joke" about now-ex fiancée Mika Abdalla.

The former Disney Channel star addressed the controversy in a statement posted to his Instagram Stories early Saturday, saying he's aware the comment was inappropriate and wants to take responsibility for it.

"I made a disrespectful, juvenile joke in a clip that recirculated this week," Short wrote. "It's imperative to me that I take accountability as I am aware that it was inappropriate."

Working with your ex would feel like a real-life "American Horror Story" to most people ... but Emma Roberts and Evan Peters seem to be handling it just fine.

The exes made a rare appearance together onstage at the Disney Upfront event in New York City on Tuesday to promote the new season of Ryan Murphy's flagship show.

They stood side-by-side along with more of the star-studded cast as they graced the stage to announce Paul Anthony Kelly would be joining the ensemble.

Hilary Duff's "luck ... or something" isn't running out anytime soon -- the former Disney star is now a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model!!

The publication shared the big news on Tuesday ... making the announcement alongside some jaw-dropping behind-the-scenes shots of the actress/singer showing off her beach bod as she posed for the camera.

Duff was in South Caicos for her shoot ... with Kat Irlin snapping the shots.

Can you guess which Hollywood hottie put her rockin' hot bod on full display in this eye-popping shot?!

This actress is best known for her role as CeCe Jones ... if you've scrolled her socials, you know she likes to shake it up!

English actress Jemma McKenzie-Brown was just a teen when she played Tiara Gold -- the ambitious and, at times manipulative, assistant to Sharpay Evans -- in "High School Musical 3: Senior Year" back in 2008.

Jemma shared the big screen with 'High School Musical' OGs like Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, and Ashley Tisdale.

ABC is actually standing up to the FCC for once ... going after the government agency for targeting "The View."

On Thursday, the network filed a petition against the FCC, claiming they are raising serious First Amendment issues with their probe of the daytime talk show.

Back in February, the agency started investigating "The View" in an attempt to force them to give equal air time to politicians across the political spectrum.

Several Disney cruise ship staff members were reportedly arrested in April as part of a larger federal investigation into child sexual abuse material (CSAM) crimes.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents boarded 8 cruise ships in San Diego as part of an ongoing Child Sexual Exploitation Material (CSEM) enforcement operation between April 23 and April 27, a CBP spokesperson tells TMZ. One of the cruise ships belongs to Disney, the California Post reported.

After boarding the vessels and interviewing 26 suspected crew members from the Philippines, one from Portugal, and one from Indonesia, officers determined 27 of the 28 people were involved in either the receipt, possession, transportation, distribution, or viewing of CSEM, the CBP spokesperson tells TMZ.

Bob Chapek dreamed it, and then he did it ... the former Disney CEO just unloaded his Los Angeles estate.

Real estate sources tell TMZ ... Bob's mansion just closed for $13 million ... about 4 months after he put it on the market.

The place is 10,000 square feet with 6 bedrooms ... and it's decked out with a home theater fit for a Disney screening.

Jimmy Kimmel will once again be appearing at upfronts for Disney's ABC ... just like he's done for the past 20 years, TMZ has learned.

Multiple sources tell us ... Jimmy will be there -- news that would usually make for a ho-hum headline, but with all the drama in which he's been ensnared with President Donald Trump, interest in whether he'd be at the key TV advertising event was piqued.

It appears that Jimmy being there is status quo -- but of course, his most recent spat with Trump's White House has dominated media coverage -- even though it sure seems to already be dwindling.

Evangeline Lilly's stepping up to defend the real superheroes behind the Marvel characters onscreen ... blasting parent company Disney for letting some high-profile crew go.

Here's the deal ... the House of Mouse recently laid off about 1,000 staffers amid some notable shakeups at the company -- including the exit of CEO Bob Iger -- and comic book artist Andy Park, who worked on 40+ Marvel movies, was one of them.

In a video posted to social media, Lilly says she reached out to her friend -- who helped bring her character's superhero costume to life, she says -- about the firings and a pivot toward A.I. ... and, she says Park confirmed her worst fears.

It seems Brendan Carr was not amused by Jimmy Kimmel's "light roast joke" about Melania Trump last week ... because he's reportedly about to order Disney-owned TV stations to re-up their broadcasting licenses early.

A source with knowledge of the matter tells NBC News the FCC chairman is set to issue the directive Tuesday ... which will force Disney's 8 stations to file their renewals two years ahead of schedule -- noting they weren't due until 2028 at the earliest.

The insider says the "unprecedented" order is sparked by the Melania joke Jimmy made during his show last week.

ICYMI ... Jimmy aired a mock White House Correspondents' Dinner roast on Thursday, 2 days before the actual event -- since this year's dinner did not have a comedian host, as is tradition -- when he said Melania "had the glow of an expectant widow."

President Donald Trump is now joining Melania Trump and Karoline Leavitt in piling on Jimmy Kimmel ... demanding the late-night host be fired after his controversial joke about the First Lady.

Trump erupted on Truth Social on Monday ... calling Kimmel "in no way funny" and taking a swipe at his "terrible Television Ratings" before blasting the comic for airing what he described as a "fake video" of Melania and Barron during his monologue.

Trump was referring to Kimmel's White House Correspondents' Dinner parody, where the host joked, "Our First Lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow."

The president argued the joke took on a much darker meaning after authorities say an armed suspect tried to storm the actual White House Correspondents' Dinner just two days later.

The magic's not lost ... 'cause Selena Gomez reunited with none other than her "Wizards of Waverly Place" costar David Henrie.

Check out the pics -- Selena was spotted leaving dinner at L.A.'s Giorgio Baldi Sunday night, where David was joined by his wife Maria Cahill, who’s pregnant with their fourth child.

Everyone brought the style -- but this didn’t feel like a random catch-up. The timing’s a little too perfect ... especially with "Wizards Beyond Waverly Place" gearing up for its third and final season this summer.

Selena’s stepping back into her iconic role as Alex Russo -- the one she made famous in the OG "Wizards of Waverly Place" -- while David’s still holding it down as big bro Justin.