Amber Heard Acknowledges Johnny Depp Trial ... Says She's Going Offline

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are going to trial next week -- and the latter says she's unplugging from the world as she heads into court to defend herself against his claims.

The actress opened up on social media Saturday, just a couple days before she and her ex-husband are set to face off in front of a judge and a jury in Virginia Monday ... where they'll hash out once and for all if Amber defamed him by suggesting she was a victim of DV.

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AH writes, "I’m going to go offline for the next several weeks. As you may know, I’ll be in Virginia where I face my ex-husband Johnny Depp in court. Johnny is suing me for an op-ed I wrote in the Washington Post, in which I recounted my experience of violence and domestic abuse."

She notes she never named him, but discussed the price women pay for speaking against powerful men, adding, "I continue to pay that price, but hopefully when this case concludes, I can move on and so can Johnny. I have always maintained a love for Johnny and it brings me great pain to have to live out the details of our past life together in front of the world."

She finishes ... "At this time, I recognize the ongoing support I've been fortunate to receive through these years, and in these coming weeks I will be leaning on it more than ever."

Of course, Amber is referring to this article, where she says, in part ... "[T]wo years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out," going on to detail how she felt she'd been blackballed for speaking her truth ... this in the wake of her tumultuous 2-year marriage with Depp.

Interestingly enough, JD has also argued he's been blackballed from the industry ... and the proof is kind of in the pudding -- especially as it relates to his 'Fantastic Beasts' recasting.

At any rate ... he's looking for a much-needed W here in the States -- his reputation took a major hit after he lost his libel case in the U.K. ... where he was labeled a "wife-beater" by a newspaper there, and which a judge ultimately agreed was "mostly true" after trial.

As we've reported ... their witness list is a who's-who of Hollywood, with the likes of Elon Musk, James Franco, Paul Bettany and others who are expected to take the stand.

Like we said -- this thing is set to get underway in about 48 hours or so, and it'll be interesting to see where the dust settles when it's all said and done.

Stay tuned ...

Kim Kardashian 'Kanye and I Will Always Be Family'

TAKING THE HIGH ROAD
ABC

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West will always be family ... so says Kim, despite any hard feelings stemming from their rocky divorce.

The SKIMS founder opened up about co-parenting with Kanye on ABC ... saying, "When it comes to family, Kanye and I will always be family." Kim added, "At the end of the day, I just want my kids to be happy and healthy and think the world of their dad, and they do."

Kim and Kanye have 4 kids -- North, Saint, Chicago, and Psalm. KK says, she's really open and honest with her kids ... adding the oldest two understand what's going on between her and Kanye, but the little ones don't.

As you know, Kanye and Kim's divorce has been far from smooth sailing ... Ye has even gotten suspended from Instagram for lashing out against Kim, her new boyfriend Pete Davidson, and a slew of others.

As far as how Kim has dealt with Kanye's public attacks, she says ... "You wanna take the high road, and sometimes it's hard, but I think that at the end of the day everyone has their own way of communicating".

"I've always been like a champion of him speaking his truth, and I would always want that."

TMZ broke the story ... Kim filed for divorce back in February 2021 and she's now in what looks like a serious relationship with Pete Davidson.

Interestingly, Kanye has been quiet lately ... and if we take Kim's word for it, it seems like things are starting to calm down between the two.

O.J. Simpson Woken Up By Nicole Look-alike At 1 AM ... In Viral Prank Video

WAKEY, WAKEY
TikTok / @baseballcane23

A Nicole Brown Simpson look-alike surprised O.J. Simpson in his bedroom at 1 a.m. for a prank video -- and you can see in the footage, The Juice was SHOCKED by the impromptu wakeup call.

The clip was posted to TikTok over the weekend -- showing the Nicole doppelganger and several other young women barging into the ex-NFL star's room late at night to try to get a rise out of the guy.

The girls had their phones out -- playing music loudly -- while a man can be heard in the background saying, "Let’s go! It's party time in the house!"

One of the girls can be heard yelling "Wakey! Wakey!" ... all while the Nicole look-alike laughed.

O.J. -- who wasn't wearing a shirt -- appeared to giggle it all off ... and eventually looked like he was going to get up and entertain the guests before the video cut out.

Further details surrounding the prank -- like when it happened, where it happened and who the girls were -- are unclear ... O.J.'s yet to address it publicly.

One thing we know for sure, though, everyone in the house is lucky O.J.'s a morning guy.

Channing Crowder Russell Wilson's a Freakin' Square ... Ciara Left Future for Him?!?

APRIL 2022
GOT WITH A GOOFBALL
The Pivot Podcast

Channing Crowder thinks there's no way Ciara would leave a guy like Future to get with Russell Wilson -- at least not without some money motives behind the move ... yikes.

The ex-linebacker made the inflammatory comments on a recent episode of his podcast "The Pivot," where they were talking about the Broncos QB and his wife ... whom Crowder apparently feels is in the wrong relationship, invoking her ex of several years now.

We'll let CC speak for himself here, because he says a lot ... and much of it is pretty mean. He calls Russ a "square" and speculates Ciara is only with him for cash.

He also theorizes there's just no way Ciara would ditch someone like Future and get with Russ -- who's seen as his polar opposite -- unless there was something deeper fueling her ... because he thinks all women have a type, and believes Ciara's shown her cards.

On Sunday, Crowder doubled down on his "goofball" jabs -- posting an old photo of Russ at the NFL draft in 2012 next to his then-GF Ashton Meem, whom he mocked in the pod.

Of course, he got strong pushback from his fellow podcasters ... who tell him that women want peace, and that Ciara and Russ are perfectly happy together -- as they've been married since 2016 and have kids together.

Sooo, it seems the proof is in the pudding here ... namely, the fact they've stayed together this long proves Crowder's train of thought isn't actually supported by reality. Russ and Ciara have been couple goals for a very long time now -- and yet, this narrative persists.

Russ, meanwhile, appears to have responded to all the renewed chatter ... albeit cryptically.

He tweeted Sunday, "'But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.' Galatians 5:22-23 NIV."

Seems he's drowning out the noise and resorting to his inner focus. Probs a good idea.

Rosanna Arquette Smashes Into Back Of Delivery Truck ... Wrecks Her Tesla

Actress Rosanna Arquette wrecked her car by crashing into the back of a UPS truck ... an accident that left her in real distress, according to law enforcement and witnesses.

We're told the 62-year-old was behind the wheel of her Tesla Tuesday at the Palisades Village shopping center in L.A. Witnesses say her car was parked about 10 feet behind the truck when it suddenly plowed into the back of the vehicle, causing her airbags to deploy.

Eyewitnesses say she got out of the car completely distraught, grabbing her hair while talking to passersby. We're told cops arrived on scene, but police declined to take a report and just helped the parties exchange info.

Rosanna was eventually driven away by estranged husband Todd Morgan, who arrived shortly after the crash. Witnesses say her Tesla was towed away and the UPS employee was able to continue their route with the truck.

As we reported, Morgan filed for divorce from Rosanna last month after 9 years of marriage. Todd, an investment banker, cited "irreconcilable differences.". Looks like he's still got her back though ... especially in times of stress.

We've reached out to Rosanna for comment ... so far, no word back.

PETRA ECCLESTONE Ex Begged Judge ... Don't Let Her Change Our Kids' Last Names!!!

Petra Ecclestone has withdrawn her request to change her kid's last name to hers and drop that of her ex-husband James Stunt ... but not before some angry filings from Stunt.

In Stunt's opposition docs, obtained by TMZ, he opposed the billionaire heiress' request in their bitter divorce to change their children's surnames from Stunt to Ecclestone.

In the docs, James argued it would not be in the kids' best interests to drop their father's name and replace it with their mother's ... claiming it would alienate him from his offspring.

What's more, James says he's concerned the Ecclestone name has been tarnished and could lead to danger for the kids ... pointing to reports their famous grandfather, Formula 1 racing honcho Bernie Ecclestone, recently defended Vladimir Putin as "honorable."

Clearly, for some reason, Petra had a change of heart, because she's dropped the request altogether ... but there's still a chance she could refile.

TMZ broke the story ... Petra filed legal docs trying to change their kids' names, claiming he's an "absentee father who is subject to regular negative media and tabloid articles and criminal investigation."

In his opposition, James says he recently found out Petra was already using Ecclestone for the kids without his permission, and before a court ruling ... claiming Petra recently displayed their daughter's name as Lavinia Ecclestone, instead of Lavinia Stunt, on birthday party flyers.

James, a gold bullion dealer, and Petra, a fashion designer/socialite, divorced back in 2017.

Julia Fox Not In Talks with 'RHONY' Producers ... At Least Not Yet

Julia Fox has had no conversations with producers for "The Real Housewives of New York City," despite rumors swirling she might join the franchise ... TMZ has learned.

Production sources tell TMZ ... no conversations at all have occurred between Kanye West's former girlfriend of 2 months and 'RHONY' execs, whatsoever. But our sources did not shut down the possibility completely.

We're told producers are deep into casting but no decisions have been made yet. Still, we're told there has been no contact between Julia and producers.

In case you missed it, Bravo honcho Andy Cohen announced last week that the network is completely rebooting and recasting 'RHONY' after 13 seasons. Cohen also revealed the network will cast an additional series -- tentatively called "RHONY: Throwback" -- featuring some of the former New York housewives.

The "Uncut Gems" actress, who split from Ye in February, was raised in New York City and is good friends with 'RHONY' star Leah McSweeney, who also served as Julia's sponsor in AA years ago.

So ... we're not ruling out Julia, just yet!

Joe Exotic Files For Divorce from Dillon

UPDATE

3:20 PM PT -- Joe is apparently desperate to get out of his marriage, tweeting, "Dillon, please just sign it and go away."

Joe Exotic is giving up on his marriage while he sits behind bars ... because he just filed for divorce.

The 'Tiger King' star filed divorce docs Thursday after more than 4 years of marriage to Dillon Passage ... and in the docs, obtained by TMZ, Joe says the marriage is irretrievably broken.

Joe and Dillon have been estranged for about a year ... as we first told you, Dillon called Joe in prison last March and told Exotic he wanted out of the relationship and divorce was on the table.

But, Joe is the one actually pulling the trigger on the divorce ... his legal team says Dillon never followed through on his divorce threat.

TMZ broke the story ... Dillon's already moved on with a new boyfriend, and Joe is looking for love too.

Joe and Dillon tied the knot on Dec. 11, 2017 ... 2 months after Joe's previous husband, Travis Maldonado, died after accidentally shooting himself.

In the docs, Joe says he's in need of alimony in the form of a lump sum and says he wants to change his name from Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage back to Joseph Allen Maldonado.

Joe's divorce attorney, Autumn Blackledge, says Exotic hopes he and Dillon "can both move on with their lives and divorce quickly and amicably."

Kim Kardashian I'm a Cool Mom (Rich, Too) ... Check Out $400K Minivan!!!

Kim Kardashian isn't your average soccer mom ... at least not when it comes to the wheels she uses to chauffeur her kiddos and their orange slices to games.

A LOOK INSIDE

Check out the inside of Kim's custom luxury Maybach van, complete with multi-color roof lighting, folding tables, seat heaters and coolers and reclining captain's chairs throughout.

That stuff alone would probably warrant the astronomical $400k Kim dropped for the ultimate mom ride, but as they say ... there's more!

The van also features leather seats with diamond stitching, and that must-have kid distraction ... TV screens in all the seat partitions.

Kim recently scooped this up from her pal RD Whittington, who owns Wires Only ... an automotive and aviation company that specializes in custom whips for celebs.

Not only did Kim buy the luxury mom-mobile through his company, but she also agreed to document the buying process on RD's hit reality show, "Million Dollar Wheels" on Discovery+. Her episode premiered this week.

POUND IT
Dutch / BACKGRID

We should note ... Kim's not the only one in her fam to buy one of these fancy vans. Kanye bought one from RD as well, and recently took it out while grabbing ice cream solo.

Now their kids will have equal luxury with both parents. Co-parenting at its finest ... and most expensive!!!

Speaking of Ye -- he and Kim made big progress over the weekend when they came together with their kids to cheer on Saint at his soccer game.

It's the first time we've seen the exes together in a while, and certainly points to a cooling off from their social media wars.

Anthony Anderson Wife Files For Divorce After 20+ Years of Marriage

Anthony Anderson's wife, Alvina, has filed for divorce, ending their 22-year marriage.

According to court documents obtained by TMZ ... Alvina filed on Friday in Los Angeles and is requesting spousal support from Anthony. She also checked the box to block the court's ability to award any support to Anthony ... and also wants him to pay for her attorney fees.

Anthony and Alvina met while attending Howard University in Washington D.C. in 1989 ... he dropped out his junior year due to financial issues, but is reportedly working towards graduating this year with his son.

After marrying in 1999, the two became separated from 2014 to 2016. As we reported, Alvina filed for divorce back in 2015 but dropped the case the following year. This occurred at the same time Anthony booked his popular role on "Black-ish."

Anthony and Alvina have 2 adult children together -- 22-year-old Nathan and 26-year-old Kyra.

'Vanderpump Rules' Katie Maloney Files For Divorce From Tom Schwartz

"Vanderpump Rules" star Katie Maloney has officially filed for divorce from Tom Schwartz ... ending their marriage.

Katie filed court docs Tuesday in L.A. County Superior Court. The two have no children together.

We last saw the two at Mister O's Saturday in the San Fernando Valley, with eyewitnesses saying they seemed uninterested in each other ... rarely holding eye contact while speaking.

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Last week, the couple announced their split with a lengthy post on Katie's Instagram. The text was paired with photos of the two of them -- showing happier times.

Katie and Tom had a wedding on their Bravo show back in 2016 ... but some speculated it may not have been official because they flew to Vegas 3 years later ... apparently to officially tie the knot.

The two seemed to have a dramatic relationship at times, with things like angry texts and cheating allegations creating difficulties. But, Katie jumped on the "You're Gonna Love Me" podcast Friday and said their breakup was very low-drama.

Julia Fox As for Kanye Not Hurting a Fly ... Well, Let Me Clarify

Julia Fox is doing a moonwalk after she told TMZ her ex, Kanye West, wouldn't hurt a fly.

When we got Julia outside Barry's Bootcamp a few days back in WeHo, she called Ye's rants "artistic, creative expression," though she said she wasn't following his blow-by-blow social media attacks against Kim and Pete.

3/16/22
JUST ARTISTIC EXPRESSION
TMZ.com

Well, apparently she started looking more closely, because Julia posted -- then deleted -- "I would like to point out that I had not seen the latest Instagram posts at the time of this video," adding, "Believe it or not I have a life and a son, and I don't have google alerts for this man!"

And then the comment that's hard to swallow ... "I thought this question was in reference to the music video."

JABS AT "SKETE"
@kanyewest / INSTAGRAM

Julia, who dated Kanye for a few weeks, says she's stuck between a rock and a hard place ... "Yeah I could just not answer questions but then it would be 'Julia is mad she salty' etc and I'm not! It's a real catch 22 so please stop F'n asking me!"

And then, as if she's as perplexed as the millions of people who follow Kanye, she said, "I wish I had the answers, but I do not. I would like to remain an Indie Queen. The mainstream life isn't for me."

Hey Julia ... even Switzerland's taking a stand these days.

TMZ broke the story ... Kanye was suspended from Instagram after hurling racial slurs at Trevor Noah, and now he's persona non grata at the Grammys.

Johnny Depp & Amber Heard Defamation Witness List ... A Who's Who of Hollywood!!!

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are going back to court to settle who defamed who once and for all -- and their witness list includes a ton of A-listers ... who'll have to take the stand.

With the trial set to kick off next month in Virginia, just about all the legal docs are filed for witnesses and exhibits ... and reports say the likes of James Franco, Elon Musk and Paul Bettany, among others, are going to be dragged into court and be forced to testify.

Franco and Musk are on Amber's witness list -- this after Johnny alleged she'd had affairs with each of them during their marriage -- and they'll presumably speak on that. Both guys are said to be beaming in via video link ... so they won't be there in person.

"Animal Kingdom" actress Ellen Barkin is also on Heard's witness list, as are reps for huge orgs like Disney, Warner Bros, WME the ACLU and even the LAPD ... which will mostly offer records that she finds pertinent to help make her case.

For his part, Depp has Marvel actor Paul Bettany testifying on his behalf -- Bettany was also roped into the U.K. libel case that JD lost ... having old text messages they once exchanged read aloud in court. Ya gotta imagine they'll get into that again here.

A SECRET DANCE
TMZ.com

There's more to be unearthed, including correspondence between Heard and her "Aquaman" costar Jason Momoa, director James Wan, director Zack Snyder and CAA chief Bryan Lourd. There are also emails between Depp and J.K. Rowling and Jack White that'll be addressed.

In case you need a refresher ... both exes are suing each other for defamation, and it seems the judge is going to hear each of their claims in one fell swoop, which is probably why there are so many witnesses/submitted evidence -- they're trying to bury this at long last.

This specific claim of defamation got started after Johnny sued Amber for $50 million following a WaPo op-ed piece in which she characterized herself as a victim of domestic violence ... without ever saying his name. Still, he felt that was enough to take her to court over.

Amber countersued for $100 mil, and despite each of them filing to have the other person's case tossed ... both cases have been given the green light to proceed.

Remember, this all follows a major blow JD suffered across the pond ... where he lost a libel case after a newspaper labeled him a "wifebeater," which a judge ruled was mostly true.

In spite of that, he's forging ahead in similar territory here in the States ... all in an attempt to clear his name and get his career back on track. As you know, he's claimed that Hollywood has blacklisted him in the wake of the U.K. ruling ... all while maintaining his innocence.

Trial proceedings are set to get underway on April 11.

Kim Kardashian I Try to 'Take The High Road' During Kanye's IG Attacks

TAKING THE HIGH ROAD
Ellentube

Kim Kardashian's estranged husband has used social media as a vessel to launch attacks on her and Pete Davidson -- and although Kim says it's tough, she tries to "take the high road" -- keeping their kids in mind.

Kim is set to sit with Ellen DeGeneres Thursday, where she tackles everything from the happiness she's found with Pete Davidson to the struggles she's facing with Kanye in the wake of their divorce.

Ellen tips her cap to Kim, saying it's impressive the mother of 4 is able to hold off on publicly going after Kanye -- the way he's done to her.

Kim says she learned a lot from her own mom and dad -- who went through a divorce -- and that she'll always be somewhat protective of Kanye because he's the father of her kids.

Of course, that's seemingly been more difficult lately ... Kanye's currently in Instagram timeout. TMZ broke the story, Ye's account was suspended for at least 24 hours for his violations of the app's community guidelines. We're told it's possible he could face more sanctions if his online harassment and bullying continues.

As for Kim, she says she tries to take each hurdle as a life lesson ... so you can imagine she's learned a lot since filing for divorce last year.

Julia Fox 'Kanye's Harmless!!!' No Danger to Kim or Pete

3/16/22
JUST ARTISTIC EXPRESSION
TMZ.com

Julia Fox insists Kanye West wouldn't hurt a fly, or Pete Davidson, because he's quite harmless ... and his shots at Kim Kardashian's BF are just a form of "artistic expression."

We got Julia after a workout at Barry's Bootcamp in WeHo, and asked her about Kanye's string of threats against Pete ... which started while she and Ye were still dating. Many people think Kanye's crossed a line, Julia sees no real danger on the horizon.

JABS AT "SKETE"
@kanyewest / INSTAGRAM

Julia says Kanye wouldn't follow through on any physical threats, and thinks it's all just creative expression. While she does admit her ex comes off aggressive, she dismisses it as nothing more than talk ... despite what D.L. Hughley or Trevor Noah might think.

However, Instagram clearly thinks his posts have become a problem. TMZ broke the story, Ye was suspended from posting, commenting, DM'sing and other actions on the app for at least 24 hours on Wednesday. A spokesperson told us he'd gone against community guidelines.

There are others who think Kanye's rants are a sign he might be a threat to himself ... and Julia has an opinion on that too.

Remember ... Julia got super close to Kanye during their recent fling, so you'd think she has a decent handle on what's going on with him behind the scenes.

Of course, they've been broken up for about a month now -- so, Julia did a little self-promotion when it comes to any potential suitors out there.

Kanye West 24-Hour Instagram Suspension ... After Attacks on Kim, Pete, Trevor & Others

Kanye West is being put in Instagram timeout after going after Kim, Pete, Pete's writing partner and a racist attack on Trevor Noah.

A spokesperson for Meta tells us Kanye's recent posts violated Instagram's policies on hate speech, harassment and bullying. As a result, we're told his account has been suspended for 24 hours -- where he won't be able to post, comment, send DM's, among other things.

The spokesperson tells us they'll take additional steps if further violations happen.

If you look on Kanye's page, at least one post has been deleted already, where Yeezy repeatedly hurled racial slurs at Trevor Noah.

As you know ... Kanye's been lashing out at more than just Trevor on social media, he's also posted and deleted a bunch of dirty laundry about estranged wife Kim Kardashian and her new boyfriend Pete Davidson, plus D.L. Hughley.

In all honesty, it's surprising it's taken this long ... but supposedly the previous attacks -- some of which could've been perceived as threats -- just weren't enough.

Yeezy wouldn't be the first big name to get the boot from Mark Zuckerberg's app ... remember, Kanye's good friend Donald Trump got the heave-ho in the wake of the Jan. 6 riots.

Stay tuned ...

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