Money

Elon Musk says he's ponying up to Uncle Sam and then some -- paying more than $11 billion in taxes ... which he likely hopes will get some political bigwigs off his back for a while.

Tesla's CEO put his cards on the table this weekend, tweeting ... "For those wondering, I will pay over $11 billion in taxes this year." He doesn't specify where the tax money will be pulled from -- whether it's his personal cash or Tesla -- but it's a large chunk of change, nonetheless.

Of course, EM's been getting dogged by Senator Elizabeth Warren -- among other elected officials -- for not paying his fair share in taxes, and coasting on profits from the huge pile of stock and other assets he holds onto without really ever cashing out.

While Elon's honesty might seem pretty forthright and righteous ... the truth is, he was expected to pay about this much regardless -- especially since he's got A LOT of stock options that are set to expire in August, which was projected to produce a tax bill of at least $15 bil.

Of course, Congress could still come down heavy on billionaires under Biden's agenda ... so it's also possible Elon wants it known he's paying what he considers his fair share already.

Whether he did it to get ahead of the curve or not, Elon's lump sum of $11 billion-plus will go down as one of the highest tax payments in U.S. history, if not the largest. That's counts for something, we suppose.

In any case, you gotta imagine Elon's tweet was mostly for the eyes of Sen. Warren, in hopes she gets off his back about not paying taxes -- 'cause he's definitely doing that this year.

However, if you ask Warren, she likely would say she wants big taxes paid by billionaires to become a regular thing ... and come under the rules of the law.

Bradley Cooper's newest movie did abysmally bad at the box office -- and ticket sales were apparently so poor ... theaters actually started bumping BC for Peter Parker.

The flick -- titled "Nightmare Alley" and directed by Guillermo del Toro -- raked in just under $3 million over its opening weekend across a little over 2,000 theaters nationwide ... this with a reported price tag of about $60 mil to make it, and future projections looking grim.

Not just that ... but it would seem some ticket buyers had to nix their scheduled outing after getting word from the local theater that they were swapping a one-off "Nightmare Alley" screening to make room for yet another "Spider-Man: No Way Home" slot.

One person writes, "True s***. Just got an email from my theater asking if I wanted to cancel my tickets for NIGHTMARE ALLEY because they cancelled every other show to free up the screen for more Spider-Man showings."

It also appears 'NA' is getting yanked out of cineplexes pretty quickly -- if it was ever playing at all, that is -- in the wake of its terrible performance, with yet another person pointing out there's only one single screening for it this upcoming week at a Marcus Theaters location.

And where "Nightmare Alley" *was* playing ... not very many people were rushing in to see it. There are few photos online showing very empty theater rooms. Bottom line ... hardly anyone caught it. Ditto for 'West Side Story' ... which did worse this weekend than last.

Meanwhile, 'No Way Home' absolutely crushed ... pulling in over $250 million this weekend, even in the midst of the pandemic and a new variant causing COVID cases to rise again.

So the question ... what gives??? Many are lamenting the lopsided numbers -- pointing out that if Spider-Man can get asses in seats during a still-scary time ... it must mean the death of "real cinema" as we know it, with tentpole popcorn franchises fully taking over.

Emmanuel Acho -- former NFL linebacker and "The Bachelor" host -- just got himself the sickest birthday present ever ... a $6 MILLION mansion!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the ex-Philadelphia Eagles player bought the insane Hollywood Hills home for his 31st birthday last month, and he even copped a vacant, 10,156-square-foot lot next to it as well.

We're told the price tag on it all was $6,325,000 ... and check out the pics of the place -- it appears to be worth every penny.

The hillside house -- which sits just moments away from the iconic Sunset Strip -- offers an incredible view of the L.A. skyline from the hills to Downtown L.A.

The dope pad features four bedrooms and five bathrooms and over 5,900 square feet ... as well as a primary bed suite with a sitting area and balcony that overlooks city lights.

There's more -- the crib also comes with three additional guest suites and features large closets and en suite bathrooms ... as well as a massive kitchen fully equipped with state-of-the-art appliances.

Brooke A. Elliott of Aaron Kirman Group at Compass represented the seller, while Kennon Earl of Rare Properties at Compass represented Acho.

As for Acho's feelings on the sale, he's clearly pleased with it all ... posting from the pad last month, "I didn't know what to do for my birthday... #NewHomeOwner #LosAngeles."

Big Sean finally got his chance to address Kanye West saying signing the guy to a deal was the worst thing he'd ever done -- and let's just say ... he had a lot to get off his chest.

The Detroit rapper was up to bat on the "Drink Champs" podcast, and during the sprawling interview -- Ye's remarks from about a month or so ago were brought up ... which BS did not shy away from in the slightest.

For starters, Sean says he was hurt by Kanye's words ... and took the very public shot personally -- this after thinking it was funny/absurd at first. He explains why, and it basically boils down to his loyalty and dedication to Ye's label G.O.O.D. Music ... and to Ye himself.

Check it out ... dude says he's been available to Kanye on the drop of a dime over their time together, and not just that ... but was apparently also the first one to suggest Kanye run for POTUS. Eventually, he pivots to money ... citing cash he says he's owed from Ye/G.O.O.D.

The amount Sean claims he's due ... around $6 mil or so, although he notes he's not sure if this is even on Kanye's radar. Still, he says that while he thought UMG was the one screwing him at first -- he says he finally learned G.O.O.D. Music was allegedly pocketing extra profits off the success of his many albums ... the most put out by any G.O.O.D. artist, he points out.

Sean also addresses Kanye's gripe about him and John Legend endorsing other candidates while Ye was running for President last year ... but BS denies he ever did so, saying he purposely stayed silent out of respect for Kanye.

There's a lot to unpack in the 3-plus hour-long interview ... but the takeaway here is, Sean was quite angry after hearing Ye trash him so publicly. He says Kanye actually reached out shortly thereafter to reconcile, but Sean says he shot him down.

Jennifer Lopez was the main attraction in Bev Hills Friday ... but not for her singing -- rather, for her shopping.

J Lo hit up Valentino and then Dior on Rodeo Drive, and a throng of shoppers and tourists gawked as she eyed fancy dresses for possible purchases.

She also gave the once over to some glasses and coats.

She definitely wasn't in a talking mood, but still ... fans got an eye-full, even if she was partially hidden by her mask.

Interesting ... whether the 2 families will blend for XMAS, especially after Ben's interview with Howard Stern. There have certainly been combos of the 2 families ... Ben's kids and J Lo's have intermixed, but as for one big celebration with everyone -- no word on that.

TMZ broke the story ... Ben and Jen are looking for a house in L.A., but so far no deal. As they settle in, it'll be interesting to see how everything shakes out with the blended families.

Cardi B is delivering some bad news to fans hoping to get their hands on one of her dolls ... the product won't be released over production delays and concerns about the product's quality.

Here's the deal ... Cardi and Real Women Are -- a fashion doll brand -- joined forces to make a limited edition Cardi B doll, which they started taking pre-orders for in March at $35 a pop, but shipping deadlines were missed and folks started thinking it was all a scam.

The Real Women Are Instagram started to get flooded with unhappy customers wanting to know where their Cardi B-inspired doll was and demanding refunds.

Welp, brace yourself Bardi gang.

The role of Grinch will now be played by a rep for Cardi B, who tells TMZ ... the dolls will not be released as a result of COVID-related manufacturing and shipping delays. We're also told Cardi herself had concerns the dolls wouldn't meet her high-quality standards.

Dorothy Wang is making the jump from one rich reality show to another ... and one coast to another -- she's starring in a new Netflix show that's a spin-off of the popular "Bling Empire."

Production sources tell TMZ ... the spinoff will be set in New York City, but will still focus on Dorothy's lavish lifestyle ... just in a new setting. Big Apple retailers gotta be licking their chops!

We're told filming is starting in early January, and Dorothy will be joined on screen by some of her super-rich friends.

As you know ... the OG "Bling Empire" follows a group of wildly wealthy Asian and Asian-American celebs in Los Angeles, including Dorothy's close friend Christine Chiu.

Dorothy has a history with this sort of TV show ... she famously starred on all 4 seasons of E!'s "Rich Kids of Beverly Hills."

Amanda Serrano's fighting on the Jake Paul-Tyron Woodley II card ... and the boxing star tells TMZ Sports she's looking to flatten her opponent, and set up a multi-million dollar bout with one of the baddest women in the world, Katie Taylor!

33-year-old Serrano -- the 41-1-1 featherweight champ -- recently signed to Paul's MVP Promotions ... and is boxing 38-year-old Miriam Gutierrez (14-1) Saturday night on Showtime PPV.

Amanda, who routinely KO's her opponents, is always fun to watch ... but this fight has some added juice because a win could set AS on a collision course with Taylor.

"[Me vs. Taylor is a] mega-fight for women's boxing. But, right now I have Miriam in front of me. This is my test. This is my measuring stick. If I knock Miriam out, it's gonna be a statement fight," Serrano told us.

If you're not familiar with the women (first, ya should be) ... Serrano and Taylor (in addition to Claressa Shields) are considered the top 3 female boxers in the world.

Who's the best? That's a surefire way to start a debate.

As for the payday with a Serrano-Taylor fight ... Amanda's coach, Jordan Maldonado, says both boxers can expect a fat check.

"Kudos to Jake Paul. Amanda's upcoming fight with Katie Taylor is a 7-figure fight, and it's because of him that that's happening. It'll be the first time in the history of female boxing that both girls are making 7 figures."

Obviously, we're talking a minimum of $1 million ... but first, Serrano needs to win in Tampa.

And, there's a reason the checks would be so big ... AS vs. KT would without doubt be one of the biggest women's boxing events ever.

"That's why Saturday night is a big night for me," Amanda said, adding "I'm not overlooking Miriam because she's a tough girl, she's a great test for me, but this fight definitely means a lot."

Maldonado broke it down like this.

Skee-Lo's famous 1995 single "I Wish" is about to put some money in someone's pocket ... because the royalties just sold on the open market.

The songwriter royalty streams for the iconic hip-hop song just went up for sale through the Royalty Exchange with an initial asking price of $375k -- but, apparently, that number was too high ... for everyone. The eventual buyer dropped a mere $245,000 to scoop up the rights for "I Wish". Quite the bargain!

The deal is similar, in principle anyway, to the mega-transaction Bruce Springsteen pulled off this week -- selling ALL his publishing and royalty rights to Sony for $500 million.

As for Skee-Lo ... we're told his hit track's recently been paying off more due to increased plays on streaming services -- "I Wish" has been streamed more than 103 million times on Spotify alone, and the royalties paid out nearly $28k in the past 12 months.

Skee-Lo released the song way back in 1995 and it was an instant hit, rising up the charts and eventually earning a Grammy nomination.

You know how it goes ... "I wish I was a little bit taller, I wish I was a baller, I wish I had a girl who looked good I would call her, I wish I had a rabbit in a hat with a bat and a six four Impala."

Skee-Lo's single is certified gold for selling over 600,000 copies.

Jake Paul is lettin' it be known he has no issue with being the "Problem Child" -- 'cause he turned his nickname into an insane diamond chain -- that's worth $225,000!!!

The YouTuber debuted the ice at his pre-fight event with Tyron Woodley on Thursday in Tampa, Fla. -- and TMZ Sports has learned it's an absolutely gaudy piece.

We're told Paul hit up his old pals at BlueMoon and Co. in Los Angeles to put the bling together ... and they pulled out all the stops for it.

In addition to the words "Prblm Child" written in diamonds on the front of the pendant ... the ice also has his full name inscribed on the back. There's also a spinning star on top.

We're told the chain is infused with 95 carats of VS quality diamonds and 14k of gold -- and in total it weighs a pound (545 grams)!

The whole thing is handmade by the company ... and we're told it's all valued at $225K.

Of course, the bling wasn't the only thing screamin' money during Paul's presser with Woodley -- JP also had a Most Valuable Boxer belt with him, which he says is worth $500K!

The Rockettes are canceling the rest of their 2021 performances because COVID is once again causing havoc in NYC.

The Radio City staple says they just can't continue their Christmas Spectacular due to "increasing challenges from the pandemic." Those challenges include a COVID outbreak among the production team, plus musicians in the orchestra ... including a swath of breakthrough cases.

The Rockettes had a big show scheduled for Friday night, but after it got the ax folks outside the venue in Midtown Manhattan were reportedly crying, and now the whole season is 86'd.

The Rockette's Christmas Spectacular is a holiday tradition in the Big Apple, where COVID cases are reaching daily highs and breaking records even though we are nearly 2 years into the pandemic.

While things seemed to be getting back to normal in the entertainment world, events are getting scrapped left and right and professional and college sports teams are dealing with outbreaks that are messing with their game schedules.

5 Seconds of Summer's new management team landed big deals worth millions, but the band fired them and stiffed the team on commission ... according to a new lawsuit.

The pop band is being sued by YMU Music, and the management company claims 5 Seconds of Summer owes them a fat check for their hard work securing lucrative deals.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, 5SOS hired YMU back in February and the management team hammered out recording and merchandising deals for the band, which led to millions of dollars in advances and other payments for the band members.

However, YMU claims once the new deals were locked in and right before the money started flowing to 5 Seconds of Summer, the band fired them in what YMU claims was an attempt to avoid ponying up some big time commissions.

In the docs, YMU claims it sent the band invoices over the last few months looking to get paid what they say were agreed-upon 15% commissions but haven't gotten paid. The management team thinks the band and other advisors believed that they could pressure YMU into giving a discount ... but instead, they now have a lawsuit on their hands.

YMU is going after 5 Seconds of Summer in court now and seeking more than $2.5 million.

Bruce Springsteen's the Boss alright ... of the IRS, because the rock legend is gonna end up saving millions in taxes every year, courtesy of his record-setting sale of his music catalog ... according to Daymond John.

The "Shark Tank" star gave us some insight into why Springsteen and several other huge music stars are unloading their master recordings and publishing rights to corporations -- and turns out taxes are one major motivation.

Even before Sony bucked up big time for Bruce's songs we've seen Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, Neil Young, Shakira, Imagine Dragons and others sell their tunes in 9-digit deals ... although, only Dylan's at $300 mil comes close to Springsteen's half a BILLION.

As Daymond explains on Friday's "TMZ Live" ... obviously these celebs are already in the highest tax bracket, which means they'd be paying around 40% in federal taxes on their income from annual royalties.

Now those royalties go to whoever buys the catalog, and that's the true brilliance of these deals. You've gotta see Daymond's explanation, but basically, Bruce is about to cut his tax rate in half!!!

There are other motivators too -- such as worldwide pandemics shutting down concerts and traditional revenue streams -- but at the end of the day, Daymond says the name of the game, for Bruce and others, is securing steady income for generations to come.

Carson Wentz just made sure his O-linemen won't go hungry (or thirsty) for Christmas ... 'cause he just gave them all a grip of meat, booze and coolers ahead of the holiday!!

Colts guard, Quenton Nelson, and tackle, Matt Pryor, showed off the goodies on social media on Thursday ... revealing their quarterback dropped off the presents right in their lockers this week.

In total, the gift baskets for the big fellas included two Yeti coolers, a Yeti water bottle, bourbon and some meats from "The Wagyu Shop."

No word on the final price tag of it all, but since Wentz has made over $100 MILLION in his career, we're pretty sure none of it was cheap.

As for the guys' reaction to the presents, both Nelson and Pryor seemed pumped for the early X-mas gifts ... thanking the QB in their comments.

Jake Paul just got an incredibly expensive early Christmas gift -- a $500k championship belt decked out with a Rolex, Cartier watch and a Birkin bag attached to it!!!

The Problem Child showed off the "Most Valuable Boxer" belt at his presser with Tyron Woodley on Thursday -- saying it's a one-of-a-kind and designed by artist Alec Monopoly.

It came out lookin' like money -- literally -- the thing has two wildly valuable watches sewn into the strap of the belt on one side.

The Hermes Birkin bag -- which comes with a starting price of around $40k -- is stitched in on the other strap.

Altogether, Jake says the piece cost $500k.

"Thanks to the kind-hearted CEO of @mostvaluablepromotions for the belt," Paul said, "It’s hand-painted by one of the greatest artists of our generation."

There's more -- Jake and Tyron went at it at the presser Thursday ... with the YouTube superstar coming close to saying he was going to eat Woodley's ass.

The UFC champ added he's gonna earn the $500k knockout bonus in the fight ... and then invest it all into cryptocurrency.

Jake -- and his belt -- will be facing off against Woodley on Saturday.

Deion Sanders says Jackson State absolutely did not pay top recruit Travis Hunter to come to the school ... explaining Thursday, "We ain't got no money!"

After Prime flipped the H.S. baller from his Florida State commitment to JSU on Signing Day on Wednesday ... rumors began swirling that JSU had unloaded cash in the forms of NIL deals to get him to sign on the dotted line.

In fact, there was internet chatter that there was some kind of agreement with the nation's #1 overall recruit that involved more than $1 million.

But, Deion shot all of that down when talking with Max Kellerman, Keyshawn Johnson and Jay Williams on Thursday ... saying there was no money involved in getting Hunter to JSU.

"We didn't pay," Sanders said. "We ain't got no money! We ain't got no money! A million and a half? I heard a million and a half. And I heard Dave Portnoy over at Barstool -- that's the biggest lie I've ever heard."

"You know what that is?" the Tigers head coach continued. "That means we kicked your butt, we took what was ours. And now, you got to make up an excuse why."

"Ain't nobody giving out a million and a half. I wouldn't pay my son a million and a half! How am I going to coach a guy that's making more than me?!"

As for how Sanders says he actually got Hunter to flip to his program -- Prime told the guys he guaranteed Hunter that he'd play both ways, and he also said a visit to JSU for its homecoming game earlier this year was what really sealed the deal for the teenager.

Hunter is expected to suit up for JSU next fall ... and it ain't hard to see Deion is pumped to watch that all go down.