Movies

New York-native Zane Buzby made her big-screen debut when she landed the role of the pill-popping hippie, Jade East -- who gets picked up while hitchhiking and ultimately helps Cheech and Chong get to the battle of the bands -- in the iconic 1978 stoner masterpiece, Cheech & Chong's "Up in Smoke."

Aside from Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong's classic characters ... Zane Buzby was on her hitchhiking journey with her buxom blonde BFF, Debbie, who was played by Wally Ann Wharton.

Buzby is now much more known for her work on the other side of the lens as a director ... and for her work as a humanitarian.

Monique Coleman says there's a perfectly good explanation why her old Disney Channel costar, Zac Efron, didn't join in on a big broadcast sing-along ... the almighty Wi-Fi signal.

We talked to the 'High School Musical' alum -- who was one of the former child stars in the hit DC movie series, and who performed "We're All In This Together" Thursday alongside Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and others -- and she told us why Zac was MIA during the nationally televised performance. Long story short ... dude's probably got a bad signal.

Monique says Zac -- the lead man in the 'HSM' movies -- got on-board at the very last minute, and was only able to introduce the song from a fuzzy video he sent in. The reason he wasn't able to sing along with the crew is because he's likely in a remote part of the world with crappy Internet. Last she heard, ZE was in Papua New Guinea filming for his new Quibi show, "Killing Zac Efron" -- so yeah, he wasn't gonna risk a bad show.

More importantly than that, though, is the fact that Zac is one of the most down-to-earth celebs there is in the biz ... according to Monique, anyway. She says she's not surprised he didn't cave to the Disney pressure to get in on the sing-along ... and did what he realistically could.

Brian Dennehy -- the veteran actor whose career spanned 5 decades on the stage and screen -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us Dennehy died Wednesday night in Connecticut ... we're told he passed of natural causes and there will not be an official autopsy.

The actor's career began in the '70s with a run of small guest roles on TV shows like "Kojak," "M*A*S*H," "Lou Grant" and "Dallas" ... before landing a recurring role on "Dynasty" in 1981.

That led to his big breakout movie role the following year -- playing Sheriff Teasle in Sylvester Stallone's Rambo action flick, "First Blood."

He'd go on to star in several films in the '80s and '90s, including "Silverado," "Cocoon," "The Belly of an Architect," "Best Seller," "Presumed Innocent" and "Romeo + Juliet."

Brian's most notable comedy role came in 1995, when he played Big Tom Callahan in the classic Chris Farley-led laugh-fest, "Tommy Boy."

In more recent years, he voiced the character Django in "Ratatouille" and appeared on the hit show, "The Blacklist." All in all, he has nearly 200 film and television credits to his name ... and he won a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in 2001 for the TV movie, "Death of a Salesman."

Dennehy was also an accomplished theater actor, winning 2 Tony Awards for Best Actor ... his first for "Death of a Salesman" a couple years before his TV role, and the second for "Long Day's Journey Into Night" in 2003.

In fact, the last time we saw him in 2013, he was in L.A. doing a play ... and he had some good jokes.

Brian's survived by his wife and 5 children. He was 81.

RIP

Los Angeles-Local Alexander Martin was in his mid-20s when he gained fame after locking down the role as the naive foreign exchange student -- who repeats crazy lines like "I am a sex machine" -- in the classic 1998 high school party film, "Can't Hardly Wait."

Alexander Martin was cast alongside an incredibly notable cast including '90s icons like Ethan Embry as the pathetic kid with a crush, Preston Meyers, Seth Green as the hip-hop virgin, Kenny Fisher, Peter Facinelli as the prom king jock, Mike Dexter ... and of course Jennifer Love Hewitt as the dumped damsel in distress, Amanda Beckett.

Damon Dash's pockets could be a tad lighter soon ... 'cause he's been ordered to cough up a cool $300k in a lawsuit over a mafia movie.

The movie and music producer was just ordered to pay noted author Edwyna Brooks after he took an L in court. She sued him about a year ago claiming they struck a deal in 2015 for Damon to direct the mafia boss film, "Mafietta," based on her series of books.

But, according to docs, obtained by TMZ, Brooks claimed things quickly went south after he agreed to direct the film. She claimed Dash wasted production time and money on his side projects ... like filming a music video.

She said she fired him from the project but claims that didn't stop Dash from claiming co-authorship over the movie and trying to sell it on iTunes and his Dame Dash Studios website .... all without Brooks' permission.

Brooks sued for damages ... and the judge agreed with her claims and awarded her $300k in damages plus interest. This, of course, will only add to Dash's legal woes.

Dame tells us, "The copyright claim was incorrectly decided in our opinion as you were the dominant author. In any event the damages awarded were based on pure speculation so both findings are being appealed."

Danny Goldman -- the actor best known for voicing Brainy Smurf in "The Smurfs" -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Goldman died at his home Sunday night in front of friends and family while in hospice after suffering a couple of strokes around New Years ... this according to his longtime agent, Doug Ely. His death is not related to COVID-19. Ely took to Facebook to give his decades-long friend a touching tribute.

Ely wrote, "Danny was truly one of a kind. He always had strong opinions and didn't mind telling you about them. He was incredibly funny. He loved to root for the little guy and help wherever he could. He had a huge heart. We lost a good one today. He will be missed."

Goldman's acting credits date back all the way to 1963 with a stint in "General Hospital." He later landed roles in "Young Frankenstein" as a young medical student who questioned Gene Wilder.

Goldman also landed roles in "MASH" and "Busting Loose" but he reached stardom voicing Brainy Smurf when "The Smurfs" debuted in 1981 as a Saturday morning cartoon series on NBC. Brainy Smurf -- easily one of the most identifiable characters with his trademark thick glasses -- was known to never back down from sharing his smarts.

He'd hold on to that role until the series ended in 1989 but the show's popularity kept the series on the air via USA Network, the Cartoon Network and now the Boomerang channel.

Kate Beckinsale is proving she's got a type -- spry, strapping lads, 30 or younger -- and in this case, her new fella's on the younger end of the spectrum.

The actress was spotted out Sunday in Brentwood, where she was holding hands with Goody Grace ... a Canadian musician. Who also just happens to be 22. Heyo!!!

They seem pretty cozy here, and the PDA almost certainly signals dating. It seems they've been an item for at least a few months now -- Kate and Goody were also seen hanging out together back in January, and they definitely looked like a bit more than just pals.

Also of note, Kate's newest boo thang follows a trend of her going after young dudes -- especially lately. We're talking, of course, about Pete Davidson and comedian Matt Rife ... both in their 20s.

Kate's also been romantic with Jack Whitehall, who's in his 30s. Kate, BTW, is a smoking hot 46.

Speaking of that, it's worth mentioning Kate seems to be doing what LOTS of older successful men often do ... date way below their respective age group.

WWE's newest champ Drew McIntyre is giving a sincere shoutout to The Rock for believing in his potential before he ever dreamed of getting a belt ... and the video will hit you right in the feels.

Let's take you back to July 2019 when TMZ Sports posted a video of Dwayne Johnson being asked to name a wrestler who could be the next big thing.

The Rock quickly shouted out McIntyre -- explaining, "I think he's got a great look, great build" and insane potential!

Well, the video made quite an impact on Drew -- who says it came out of the blue at a time where he was still trying to find his identity in the ring.

And, to hear someone like The Rock publicly talk about his talent gave him a huge boost to his confidence and his career.

Ya gotta watch the clip ... Drew is incredibly humble and grateful for the support -- and he'll never forget it.

'Harry Potter' star Rupert Grint and his girlfriend have made some magic of their own happen ... they're having a baby!!!

The English actor, best known for playing Ron Weasley in the fantasy film franchise, and his partner, Georgia Groome, were out in London Thursday picking up some groceries.

Now, the fact they were spotted not wearing face coverings might be newsworthy, but it's overshadowed by the bigger news ... revealed by Georgia's baby bump.

A rep for the couple confirms with TMZ ... they're "excited to announce they are expecting a baby." It will be their first child together.

Rupert and Georgia were rumored to have secretly tied the knot last year after they were seen wearing matching rings. Unclear if that's true ... but they're about to start a family together nonetheless.

Congrats!