Movies

Michael Bay just told TMZ ... the man who attacked him with an air conditioner was an extortionist who vowed to torpedo "Transformers 4" unless Bay paid him off.

Bay told us on "TMZ Live" that he was shooting in a Hong Kong neighborhood earlier in the week and had paid various businesses on the surrounding streets money in return for shutting down during the shoot. One dude held out, and, according to Bay, set out to ruin the shoot by turning on an electric saw and making other noises when the cameras were rolling.

Bay says the guy -- who he's convinced was on drugs -- came at him with the air conditioning unit.

The way he tells it ... very entertaining.

Paul Hogan's wife and "Crocodile Dundee" co-star has filed to divorce her hubby of 23 years ... TMZ has learned.

Linda Hogan -- no, not her -- cites irreconcilable differences. She wants spousal support, and joint legal and physical custody of their 15-year-old son, Chance.

As for money ... there will be a lot to divvy up ... Paul is worth a reported $20 mil.

Linda wants to erase any trace of being married to the "Crocodile Dundee" legend -- she wants her maiden name restored.

According to the docs the couple separated last month. A rep for Paul says the split has been amicable.

Hope it goes better than the divorce with his first wife, Noelene. Paul married her, then divorced her, then remarried her. When it finally blew up in 1986, it became one of Australia's ugliest celeb divorces ever.

There was certainly a sign trouble was brewing ... Paul and Linda sold their Malibu mansion last month to Chris Hemsworth.

Bottom line ... it's a crocodile done deal.

Famed director Michael Bay almost got clobbered by what appears to be a drugged out crazy who swung an air conditioner at his head on the set of "Transformers 4."

The incident occurred today in Hong Kong. The attacker somehow made it on the set, accosted several members and then set his sights on Bay. When Bay realized what was up, he saw the crazy man swinging an air conditioner right at his noggin.

Bay then wrestled the unit out of the attacker's hands and security quickly subdued him.

Actor Ed Lauter ... who you've definitely referred to as "that guy in the thing" -- because he had one of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood -- has died from a rare cancer.

Lauter appeared in more than 200 movies and TV shows over the past 4 decades ... including "Seabiscuit" ... "Mulholland Falls" ... "Leaving Las Vegas" -- and may be best known for his role of the brutal prison guard in "The Longest Yard" with Burt Reynolds. He also appeared in Adam Sandler's 2005 remake of 'Yard.'

In 2011, he also appeared in the Oscar-winning film, "The Artist" ... playing the butler opposite Berenice Bejo.

According to his rep ... Lauter died on Wednesday after battling mesothelioma -- a rare form of cancer often caused by exposure to asbestos.

Chris Pratt went through some real deal Navy SEAL training to prep for his role in "Zero Dark Thirty" -- climbing nets, crawling through sand, jumping over stuff -- but despite all the obstacles the actor tells us there's one part of the program that was particularly brutal.

Pratt -- who also stars on "Parks & Recreation" -- was out in NY yesterday when we talked about the legendary obstacle course at the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado near San Diego.

"I barely touched the tip of what these guys have to go through," Pratt says ... explaining that the REAL training program "helps to boil down the toughest mofos on the planet."

So, what task was the toughest for Pratt? Check out the clip.

10:46 AM PT -- McDonald was released at 7:20 AM ET. He has a court date on Dec. 11.

9:30 AM PT -- Shooter was SUPER wasted ... and barely able to utter a coherent sentence ... this according to one of the guys who shared a beer with McDonald just hours before his DUI arrest.

Jonathan Mincher tells TMZ he and his buddies (seen in the pic below) were drinking at Lagerheads Tavern in Wrightsville Beach, NC when Shooter walked in with a friend.

Mincher says Shooter was drinking beer ... and could hardly speak. But we're told he was a sport ... and bought Mincher and his crew a round. Mincher says when he left the bar at 1 AM ... Shooter was still there going strong.

Christopher McDonald, who played Shooter McGavin in "Happy Gilmore," was busted early this morning for DWI.

The 58-year-old actor -- who also played Travis Cole in "Dirty Work" -- was popped by North Carolina Highway Patrol deputies in Wilmington ... cuffed and taken to jail at around 4:30 AM.

Law enforcement tell us ... Shooter's blood alcohol level was .15 -- almost double the legal limit.

Before the arrest, Shooter was drinking beers with a few guys at a bar -- and definitely appears toasty.

It appears he was in Wilmington filming a movie called "The Squeeze."

Movie bigwigs will have to post $1,000 to get their star out of the slammer.

Mark Wahlberg -- who inspired and executive produced "Entourage" -- finally revealed the REAL holdup on the "Entourage" movie ... certain people are being way too greedy.

There's been talk of an "Entourage" flick ever since the HBO series wrapped back in 2011 ... and several actors have expressed serious interest in the project, but it hasn't gotten off the ground.

So,yesterday at LAX, we asked Mark when everyone's favorite Hollywood crew would finally reunite on the big screen -- and the answer we got was very interesting:

"As soon as them guys stop being so greedy."

Johnny Cash got a movie. So did Ray Charles. And now it seems that Elvis Presley could finally be the next big music legend to get on the big screen ... so says his daughter.

Lisa Marie Presley was out in SoHo last night when we asked why Hollywood was taking so long to make a major box office feature about her dad, a la "Walk the Line" or "Ray."

But Lisa Marie gave an answer that should be pretty encouraging to Elvis fans -- suggesting that there's finally some real "talk" about getting the movie made.

There are reports that Mick Jagger is trying to spearhead an Elvis movie called, "Last Train to Memphis" -- focusing on The King's early years -- but it's unclear if that's what LM is referring to.

Charlie Hunnam bailed on "50 Shades of Grey" at the last moment -- leaving everyone to wonder why he would leave the treasured role.

One interesting, yet completely unproven theory involves uhh ... little Charlie.

Michael Jackson fans and "Star Wars" geeks brace yourselves -- MJ's former doc, Arnie Klein, is unloading a bunch of his old crap ... including Jabba the Hutt and a ton of other memorabilia from the movie.

It's all part of an estate sale being held next month -- starting Nov. 13 -- where things like a production-used Jabba prototype, a Princess Leia figurine, lightsabers and a treasure trove of action figures will be auctioned off to the highest bidder.

Klein is also ditching an extensive collection of Michael Jackson lithographs (many autographed by MJ), Disney memorabilia, and an insane amount of pricey paintings.

Kinda fitting ... Klein, famed dermatologist to stars like Liz Taylor and Michael, clearly has his own eccentricities -- hoarding 'Star Wars' DVDs and toy stormtroopers right next to Rembrandts and Rodins.

As you may recall, Klein had been stashing over 100 pieces of wildly expensive art instead of turning them over to his bankruptcy trustee ... but after cops showed up to his home with an arrest warrant, he folded.

It's unclear whether or not this auction is being used to finally pay off all his debt ... but it looks that way. We reached out to Klein, but he hasn't responded.

Charlie Hunnam appeared front and center for his friends wedding yesterday -- not phased at all over DROPPING OUT OF THE ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED MOVIES EVER!!

Hunnam watched his buddy tie the knot in Santa Barbara yesterday ... just hours after Universal announced he was bailing on the "Fifty Shades of Grey" movie.

Charlie also gave a toast at the reception and was in great spirits ... according to reports.

No word on whether or not Robert Pattinson, Matt Bomer and Ian Somerhalder were invited.

Sorry ladies ... Charlie Hunnam has just dropped out of the big screen adaptation of "Fifty Shades of Grey" -- and it's all because of his role on "Sons of Anarchy."

According to reports ... the decision was made because Hunnam wasn't able to "adequately prepare" for the role due to his "immersive" TV schedule.

Makes sense, since filming was supposed to begin on the movie later this month -- but just days ago Hunnam was talking up how seriously he had been taking the role ... so it's pretty surprising.

Efron appeared in great spirits as he hit up the Griffith Park Haunted Hayride with Julianne Hough and former "Hairspray" co-star Brittany Snow ... as well as director Adam Shankman.

TMZ broke the story -- the 25-year old actor completed 2 rounds of treatment earlier this year to combat the cocaine problem that took over his life.

Julianne's brother Derek Hough snapped a pic with the group sharing hugs and smiles -- and posted it online afterward saying, "Great time last night with great friends."

Captain Richard Phillips -- the real-life HERO behind the Tom Hanks movie "Captain Phillips" -- tells TMZ he wasn't inspired by the "Love Boat" ... 'cause that show SUCKED.

At least, that's what we think he said ... he's got a pretty thick Massachusetts accent.

Here's the deal, CP was at an event in D.C. yesterday and we jokingly asked if he was inspired by the classic '80s TV show. It sounded like he said, "Not at all. Poor TV in port."

Some people in the office think he said, "In poor" instead of "in port" ... but that wouldn't really make much sense. We've literally been debating this for 10 minutes.

Either way, dude's a hero ... he wasn't a huge "Love Boat" fan and we should all probably see his movie.