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Michael Jackson's infamous criminal trial is back in the spotlight thanks to a new Netflix documentary ... and it's apparently stirred up some strong feelings among die-hard MJ fans, who are allegedly threatening one of the trial's central figures.

Ron Zonen, the lead prosecutor in Michael's 2005 trial, joined "TMZ Live" Tuesday and told us he's received a handful of threats since appearing in the new Netflix doc, "Michael Jackson: The Verdict."

Ron says the threats are coming in over email ... and it's bringing him back to 2005, when he says he faced similar backlash.

Avery Wilson has no issue with President Trump being mercilessly booed at the NBA Finals while he sang the national anthem -- but his feelings have nothing to do with politics!

Avery tells TMZ ... it was an instant pop culture moment ... and that's all he really cares about -- because his fantastic rendition of the anthem is all over social media today.

As you know ... a chorus of MSG boos rained down for DT during game 3 while the Broadway star performed ... Trump told reporters afterward he heard plenty of cheers, too.

The morning Christine Banfield was murdered was even more chilling than many realized ... with a new documentary laying out what investigators say was a carefully planned plot from start to finish.

Detective Thomas Gadell breaks down the case in FOX Nation's "The Au Pair Affair: Murder in Suburbia" ... detailing the actions of Brendan Banfield, who was recently sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of the deaths of his wife, Christine, and a stranger, Joe Ryan.

According to investigators, Banfield orchestrated an elaborate BDMS-fueled scheme involving his family's au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhaes, whom prosecutors said he was romantically involved with.

Stefon Diggs is being ordered to finally explain how he knows the man accusing him of sexual assault ... because a federal judge says calling him an "acquaintance" just isn't good enough.

According to new court documents, obtained by TMZ Sports, the judge ruled on a series of discovery disputes last week in Diggs' ongoing legal battle with Christopher Blake Griffith ... the man who has accused the NFL star of drugging and sexually assaulting him in 2023 ... allegations Diggs has repeatedly denied.

One of the biggest rulings centers on how Stefon must answer a basic question: How did Diggs and Griffith know each other before the alleged incident?

'Scary Movie' star Anna Faris says a joke she liked about Melania Trump was cut from the film ... which had some folks wondering if politics were in play amid a major Hollywood merger ... but TMZ is told that's NOT the case.

Here's the deal ... Anna said in a recent interview there was a moment in the new 'Scary Movie' where her character mocked Melania's “Be Best” initiative to combat cyberbullying.

Production sources tell TMZ ... the Melania joke was among several filmmakers cut in post-production for pacing ... and it's as simple and routine as that.

Nick Reiner wants the money he says he's owed from the trust his parents Rob and Michele Reiner set up for him ... as he awaits trial for their murders.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, the 32-year-old filed a petition Monday, requesting the distribution of money he says was supposed to be paid out from the trust when he turned 30.

Nick said he tried to hire lawyer Alan Jackson to help him fight the murder charges, which he says his siblings Jake and Romy agreed to. He claims the trustee refused to pay Jackson which caused him to depart the case.

Lenny Hochstein plans to use video footage, text messages and other evidence he says paint a dramatically different picture than the one described in a sexual assault lawsuit against him ... TMZ has learned.

TMZ has obtained video the 'Real Housewives of Miami' star's lawyer says was recorded shortly after the alleged incident ... showing his accuser leaving his Miami mansion smiling, chatting with him, and appearing completely at ease.

In the footage, the woman -- who alleges he drugged and sexually assaulted her at his Star Island home -- appears to do a little dance outside the front door before walking to an Uber.

Hochstein's lawyer, Lorne Berkeley, tells TMZ ... "Dr. Hochstein categorically denies the allegations asserted against him. We possess evidence that we believe materially contradicts the claims and evidence that will be presented in the appropriate legal forum."

Nick Reiner says he not only needs money to pay lawyers for his legal defense, but also to fund his commissary account ... and the accused double murderer claims his trustee isn't playing ball.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, Nick says he's repeatedly asked the trustee controlling his money to replenish his jailhouse account to buy additional snacks and hygiene items ... but he says the trustee has yet to break him off a little bread.

The commissary gripe is included in a petition filed Monday by the 32-year-old, requesting the distribution of money he says was supposed to be paid out from the trust his parents Rob and Michele Reiner set up for him in 1992.

Nick claims he was supposed to get the money when he turned 30, and he wants the funds to hire back Alan Jackson as his lawyer ... and also to get some stuff from the commissary while he sits in jail.

Nick Reiner's former lawyer, Alan Jackson, is ready to take on the alleged murderer's case, but he says drama over how he and his firm would get paid led to him dropping the case several months ago.

Alan filed a declaration that was submitted with Reiner's motion seeking release of his trust funds ... in it, he describes what he says went down behind the scenes that led to his law firm withdrawing from Nick's criminal case.

As TMZ previously reported, Alan was hired in December 2025 to defend Nick in court after he was charged with the murder of his parents, Rob and Michele Reiner. Alan and his firm withdrew from the case weeks later, and a public defender was then assigned to Nick's case.

In his newly filed declaration, Alan says Nick told him he wants his firm back representing him. Alan said he is willing and ready to defend Nick if funding becomes available.

Sean "Diddy" Combs has been hit with a new lawsuit ... this time from a man who claims Diddy sexually assaulted him when he was a minor under the guise of helping his acting career.

In court docs, obtained by TMZ, a man suing as a John Doe said he was already a working child actor when invited to a Hollywood Hills party in 2007 as a networking event ... which is when he says he met Diddy. The man says the rapper invited him to talk in private about career opportunities.

Once alone, according to the docs, the man claims Diddy was rubbing on parts of his body, working his way down before he allegedly performed oral sex on the man while also pleasuring himself. The man claims he told Diddy the situation was making him uncomfortable before the oral sex.

Actor Anthony Guidera -- known for his roles in "The Godfather Part III" and "Species" -- has died after his heart suddenly stopped, TMZ confirmed.

His wife, Valarie, tells TMZ ... on May 11, the couple was in the living room of their Southern California home when Anthony collapsed, and his heart stopped beating.

Valarie said Anthony was rushed to the hospital, where he was put on life support for 3 weeks. Doctors then took him off life support, per his prior directive, so he could be brought him home for a natural death.

One of the doctors convicted in the Matthew Perry ketamine case is embracing a label most physicians would run from ... telling an appeals court he was functioning as a drug dealer, not a doctor, when he sold ketamine in this case.

According to new court documents, obtained by TMZ, Dr. Salvador Plasencia is asking the Ninth Circuit to toss his 30-month prison sentence and send his case back for resentencing ... arguing the judge wrongly punished him for abusing a physician's position of trust.

In the filing, Plasencia makes a stunning claim ... insisting Perry wasn't seeking him out for legitimate medical treatment, but was instead looking for a reliable source of ketamine. Because of that, his attorneys argue, he shouldn't have been treated as a doctor who betrayed a patient, but rather as a more common drug dealer.

Josh Hokit's fighting Derrick Lewis at the White House in just a few days, but you wouldn't know it listening to the up-and-coming UFC heavyweight ... who stayed mocking Alex Pereira during a recent, albeit brief, conversation with TMZ Sports!

"Chama," the 28-year-old said when Babcock spoke to the 28-year-old fighter earlier this week ... using a faux-translator to seemingly jab Pereira.

Of course, Alex is from Brazil, and English is not his first language. Hokit, meanwhile, is from Bakersfield -- about 100 miles outside Los Angeles -- and very much does.