Humor

Ariana Grande is about that single life heading into the new year, and probably for the rest of her days ... according to her, anyway.

Ari responded to an article on Tuesday which speculated on who she's been seeing lately by hilariously tweeting, "can they tell me too?" She followed up with, "spoiler for the rest of this year / probably my life: it's no one. please refer back to this tweet for future questions."

It goes without saying ... AG's had it rough this year in the love department. She called off her engagement with 'SNL' star Pete Davidson ... and, of course, her ex, Mac Miller, tragically died of an accidental overdose from a mix of fentanyl and cocaine.

Ariana seems to be joking about the never dating again thing, but her point is coming through loud and clear ... her dating life shouldn't be the subject of such scrutiny in 2019.

Have you heard her new single yet? It's her ... she's single.

#thankunext

1:46 PM PT -- Tiffany tweeted about her show, saying, "Yes this happened. I wish it was better Miami. I prayed on it and I have a strong feeling this will never happened again."

Tiffany Haddish had a difficult New Year's Eve during her show in Miami ... especially when the crowd started to disperse mid-show.

Tiffany, who's almost always hilarious and on point, was performing at the James L. Knight Center to a packed house. But, her set wasn't connecting with the audience, and she clearly knew it. At one point, as some people started leaving, she said, "This is weird for me. Now, this is going to be on TMZ or whatever."

During her routine, Tiffany talks about her mom getting out of a mental institution ... she says she told her mom to punch her in the back and burp her. She also griped about her family asking her for money. She says her sister wanted a refrigerator and a new stove, but Tiffany said she told her sister she had just paid her rent, so she just gave her a cooler.

Tiffany changed things up, cracked open a bottle of Ciroc and started drinking with the audience.

It's interesting ... the day of her show, Tiffany posted a video promoting the upcoming comedy performance, saying she had partied the whole night and morning before.

Happy New Year!

Originally Published -- 7:45 AM PST

Hugh Jackman might not be ready to join the Harlem Globetrotters just yet, but his ball-handling skills aren't half bad ... and he's definitely got the charisma.

What else would you expect from the 'Greatest Showman?'

The 'Front Runner' star got an impromptu lesson from Globetrotters star Cheese Chisholm in the tunnel at Madison Square Garden Tuesday ... as the Knicks were prepping for their Christmas Day game against the Bucks.

Check it out ... Jackman's got some game, and totally nails the elbow pass spin move. Things get a little dicier when Cheese adds more steps though ... and he's got some work to do on spinning the ball on his finger.

BTW, the other 'Trotter in the vid is Hot Shot Swanson, the shortest Globetrotter in team history at only 4-foot-5.

The Harlem Globetrotters got a game Thursday at MSG, the first of 7 in NYC to close out 2018.

Wayne Brady thinks Louis C.K. using the n-word in front of some comics -- including Chris Rock -- is as unacceptable now as it was then ... but he's wringing everyone's neck here.

We got the "Whose Line Is It Anyway"' alum Sunday at LAX and asked for his thoughts on a 2011 HBO clip of Louis chatting with Chris, Jerry Seinfeld and Ricky Gervais ... and, at one point, dropping the n-word when CR calls him the "blackest white guy" he knows.

The clip resurfaced Saturday and went viral, with lots of criticism aimed at Chris for co-signing Louis and Ricky hurling the word back and forth in front of a very uncomfortable Jerry, who lots of folks are seeing as the hero in this scenario for speaking out against it.

Wayne isn't as conciliatory. He tells us Louis shouldn't have said it, Chris shouldn't have allowed it, and Ricky definitely shouldn't have chimed in with so much glee. He also says Seinfeld isn't a saint for his mild protest ... calling him more tactical than anything. Ouch ...

It's a harsh rebuke for sure, but Wayne makes valid points. What's weird is that Louis has been using the n-word in his stand-up for years, and this clip has been in circulation for a while.

Louis C.K., Ricky Gervais and Chris Rock hurled around the n-word during a TV chat back in 2011 ... and it's getting a lot of criticism now -- the question, what about then?

The conversation aired as part of an HBO special called "Talking Funny." Chris Rock calls Louis C.K., "The blackest white guy I know," which unleashes Louis, who asks, "You say I'm a n*****?"

There's a discussion of using the n-word in comedy.

Jerry Seinfeld does not use the word, and says he never has.

The group then discusses the use of the term in comedy and in public vs. private life. Seinfeld chimes in, "I don't think he can do that." On the other hand, Louis C.K. says he and Gervais use the word in private.

Jason Momoa is having a ton of fun as "Aquaman" -- taking the onscreen gig to the beach in Hawaii with a huge trident -- and ya gotta see what he did next!!!

Jason quickly got into character when a bunch of kids came up to him Thursday in Oahu and asked him to play with their giant toy trident ... and then he channeled Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson and crashed a wedding!

The kids weren't the only ones making everlasting memories with Aquaman, because Jason and the trident sneaked up behind some unsuspecting newlyweds for an epic photobomb.

Michael Blackson says Washington should go easy on Montae Nicholson -- because with all the issues involving NFL players these days, it coulda been way worse.

We broke the story ... the Redskins safety was caught on video KOing a man in a street fight with a devastating left-handed power shot. Nicholson and another woman were later arrested.

Some people say Nicholson took things too far -- and should have walked away from the fight before knocking his opponent out cold.

Enter Blackson -- a man never short on opinions.

"Street fight man. Street fight not over until it's over. These guys are NFL players but at the end of the day, they're still fighters that gotta defend themselves."

Blackson even saw a silver lining to this particular NFL fight.

It's hard to tell if Gilbert Gottfried's truly bitter about not being asked to reprise his role in the "Aladdin" live-action film, because the comedian's response is classic Gilbert -- cracking crass jokes.

We got the voice of Jafar's sidekick parrot, Iago, from Disney's animated classic and asked if he'd be making a cameo in Guy Ritchie's live-action remake ... but no such luck. To add insult to injury, Gilbert tells us producers went out of their way to snub him ... yet managed to get Robin Williams in the film.

Yeah ... he went there.

Gottfried also predicts it'll prove to be a big mistake not including him ... but he's got a suggestion for how the filmmakers can make it right.

In case you missed it ... the first images of the new "Aladdin" cast -- including Will Smith as the Genie and Mena Massoud as the titular star -- were revealed Wednesday.

Many fans are up in arms about Smith not being blue and Aladdin wearing a shirt ... but some diehards are just pissed there's no Gilbert.

Cardi B was James Corden's latest copilot for "Carpool Karaoke" ... and she did NOT disappoint.

The Bronx MC rode shotgun on the 'Late Late Show' host's newest singing segment, where the two of them ran through a medley of Cardi songs and mostly rapped 'em ... complete with water bottle microphones and out-the-window hype. Just watch ...

There were also a few surprises along the way ... like James giving Cardi an impromptu driving lesson (with hilarious results) and Cardi getting hit on by an old timer.

Unclear when exactly this was filmed, but there's no mention of all the Offset drama Cardi's been dealing with lately.

Kel Mitchell didn't skip a beat -- but he did skip over Kevin Hart -- when asked which current huge celebs he'd like to have cameos in the "Good Burger" reunion.

We got Kel outside A Simple Bar in L.A. and had to ask him about possible cameos if -- and we gotta believe WHEN -- the '90s comedy gets the green light. Remember ... Kel and Kenan Thompson are on board but execs at Nickelodeon have to iron things out.

In any event ... Kel ripped off a bunch of names including Chance the Rapper, Cardi B and several others. As for the Kev diss? We're guessing Kel just didn't hear us when we suggested him.

Oprah Winfrey was an icon of few words Friday night ... in fact, she was an icon of just one word ... "NO!"

We got O in New York City entering the Whitby Hotel and asked if she'd be open to hosting the Oscars if the Academy asked her. Her thumbs-down answer is unequivocal, but the way she delivers it is even more telling.

It seems like a no-win for just about anyone who takes the gig after the Kevin Hart debacle. Hart is still taking heat for his homophobic comments years ago, and the Academy is also taking a beating for putting its collective finger up and seeing which way the wind was blowing.

Sarah Silverman understands times have changed ... and that's why she's no longer the same person or comedian who used to bank on homophobic jokes.

We got Sarah outside of Craig's Thursday night and wanted her take on Nick Cannon dragging her name in the Kevin Hart controversy. ICYMI ... Nick was furious about the backlash Kevin got after old homophobic tweets resulted in him stepping down from his dream gig as host of the Oscars.

So, Nick dug up some old tweets by Sarah, Chelsea Handler and Amy Schumer in which they used similar language. Point blank ... Nick thinks there's a serious double standard in Hollywood.

Sarah's planning to address Nick's comments on her own platform, but she did say she sees things differently than she did back in the day.

Kel Mitchell has a serious case of '90s nostalgia because he tells us he wants to shoot his "Good Burger" sequel with stars from the original cast of "All That."

We got Kel out Tuesday night at A Simple Bar in Los Angeles and he sounded really excited about a potential 'GB' reunion ... with a twist.

We gotta admit, the prospect of a "Good Burger" sequel featuring Nick Cannon and Amanda Bynes sounds pretty juicy ... can we get fries with that?

As for the roots of the reunion ... Kel says the idea for a second helping started when he reunited with Kenan Thompson for a sketch on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon."

While Kenan and Kel are both down for a reboot of the 1997 comedy, Nickelodeon execs haven't given it the green light because there's been so much turnover at the top of the network.

Whoopi Goldberg thinks Ken Jeong should be the next person the Motion Picture Academy targets to host the Oscars now that Kevin Hart's out ... and Ken is totally down with it.

We got the actor/comedian Wednesday at LAX, where we asked his reaction to Whoopi's ringing endorsement -- in the aftermath of Hart stepping down after those homophobic tweets.

Thing is ... if they don't want him as host, Ken has some Oscar-related jobs he says are perfectly suited for him.

We gotta hand it to Ken ... he's got the classic Oscars acceptance speech down to a tee. Dude's already got us in stitches with his pitch, so imagine his material if he actually had time to brainstorm!

As Whoopi -- a former Oscars host, herself -- points out, Ken's a legit movie buff who would be the first Asian-American to host the Oscars. But, we're guessing the Academy will be more turned on by the fact Ken ain't worried about that skimpy paycheck.

Remember when TMZ Sports spotted Jimmy Butler drivin' around Beverly Hills in a freakin' minivan??

The Philadelphia Sixers superstar is finally dishing out the deets on why he prefers mom mobiles over luxury whips ... saying it's all a big scheme to throw people off.

And, that it does.

Not only does Jimmy Buckets rock vans -- he was in a Toyota Sienna when we shot him back in September -- he also has a "baby on board" sign in the back to top it all off.

"I'm telling you, you would never know it's me swanging that bad baby," Butler says.

"I stay real nonchalant with everything."

Hey, like we said ... the Sienna ain't a bad car at all -- 0 to 60 in 7 seconds with "spacious, high-quality interior," according to U.S. News and World Report ... and those 14 cup holders!!

It's all part of Butler's new YouTube channel, which documents his life on and off the court.

Armie Hammer and Justin Theroux made life imitate art with a trip to D.C. ... for a screening of their new film about Ruth Bader Ginsburg and actually got shoulder to shoulder with the real RBG!

The actors -- both of whom star in the upcoming flick "On the Basis of Sex" about a young Ginsburg rising to prominence -- crashed the nation's capital Tuesday, where they completely bro'd out by photobombing every touristy spot ... with one final stop at the Notorious RBG's office. Getting a pic with RBG is the Washington equivalent of getting snapped next to Mick Jagger.

Each guy captioned their own shots with the Supreme Court Justice slightly differently. Armie went traditional with, "....and then this happened!" while Justin stirred things up a bit by writing, "...new couple alert." That's funny, ya know, 'cause of everything. Ha!

As for Justice Ginsburg, she looks like she's doing a lot better since taking a nasty fall and breaking a few ribs about a month ago. She was released from the hospital shortly thereafter.

Later the same day, Justin and Armie attended a D.C. screening of their flick -- where they posed with young Ginsburg, aka Felicity Jones. It hits theaters on Christmas Day.