Movies

Chris Hemsworth must've gotten his fill from an adventure Down Under, 'cause he and his fam looked ready to get back to more urban Australian life.

Chris, his wife Elsa, and their 3 kids were spotted boarding a plane out of Adelaide after spending a couple jam-packed days in the area hanging with all kinds of wildlife. They live in Byron Bay, about 1,200 miles away on the east coast of Australia.

While they were in the south, the Hemsworth squad hit up Kangaroo Island and Seal Bay during their South Australia escapade -- coming across the likes of koalas, snakes, sea lions and dolphins along the way.

True to form ... Chris was seen taking the reigns on a lot of this stuff, literally. From snakes to fishing rods, the Aussie appeared to have a handle on things during the vacay.

Deon Cole hopes "Black Panther" can be just any other successful movie ... not drowned in controversy over its social role.

We got the "Black-ish" star leaving the Hollywood Improv and asked him if he agrees with Vivica A. Fox in that Disney producers should invest portions of its profits to the African-American community.

Vivica A. Fox raised her fist and emphatically let it be known -- "Black Panther" producers, Disney, could do wonders if it donates a big chunk of money to the African-American community.

We got Vivica Monday at LAX and she threw her support behind the Change.org petition for Marvel and Disney to invest 25% of the movie's proceeds back into the community. She says it's the right move, and could pay dividends for many years to come.

Not everyone's totally on board. We also got comedian Gary Owen, and he says it's not the studio's job to give away money. He has some advice for anyone signing the petition.

By the way, the guy who started the petition says the donation is the right thing to do, because Disney has marketed the movie almost exclusively to black moviegoers ... and it's done so in the middle of Black History Month.

Marlon Brando's son says his dad did NOT bang Richard Pryor ... even though Pryor's widow insists he did.

Marlon's oldest living son, Miko Brando, tells TMZ ... "The Marlon Brando family has heard the recent comments by Quincy Jones and we are disappointed that anyone would make such a wrongful comment about either Marlon Brando or Richard Pryor."

That's in sharp conflict with what Richard's widow, Jennifer Pryor, told us last week ... that the Brando/Pryor hookup DID go down, and Rich was fine with it.

You'll recall, Jennifer said Richard wasn't upset at all by Quincy's comments -- adding the comedian was always very open about his bisexuality, apparently having documented his experiences in diaries he kept.

Miko's gone to bat for his late father before -- most recently when the actor was accused of plotting a real rape during a movie scene. Heck, even Richard's own daughter, Rain Pryor, denied the love affair between the 2 stars in a now-deleted post ... saying Pryor had a relationship with a trans woman once ... but "Daddy did NOT have relations with Brando."

So who's truthin' and who's lyin'?

5:06 PM PT -- Weinstein's lawyer, Ben Brafman, tells TMZ, "We believe that a fair investigation by Mr. Schneiderman will demonstrate that many of the allegations against Harvey Weinstein are without merit. While Mr. Weinstein's behavior was not without fault, there certainly was no criminality, and at the end of the inquiry it will be clear that Harvey Weinstein promoted more women to key executive positions than any other industry leader and there was zero discrimination at either Miramax or TWC."

The statement goes on ... "If the purpose of the inquiry is to encourage reform throughout the film industry, Mr. Weinstein will embrace the investigation. If the purpose, however, is to scapegoat Mr. Weinstein, he will vigorously defend himself."

Harvey Weinstein and The Weinstein Company are being sued by the New York attorney general for alleged civil rights violations in the workplace.

New York's AG, Eric Schneiderman, just filed suit against Harvey, his brother Bob Weinstein, and the entire Weinstein Co., alleging they violated the state's civil rights laws and NYC's human rights laws during the disgraced movie producer's time there.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Schneiderman says Harvey persistently sexually harassed female employees at TWC by personally creating a hostile work environment and demanding quid pro quo sexual favors for continued employment or career advancement.

He goes on to allege that Harvey used his position at TWC, as well as female employees and company resources, to serve his sexual interests with other women seeking employment or business opportunities with TWC.

Schneiderman also accuses TWC's human resources department of essentially being non-existent ... while going on to claim Bob and the rest of the board of directors were complicit in Harvey's operation by ignoring credible evidence presented to them time and again.

Chloe Grace Moretz turned the big 2-1 this weekend, and promptly turned up by rubbing on a dude that wasn't her boyfriend, Brooklyn Beckham ... but she probably gets a pass.

Chloe hit the town Saturday night for he 21st birthday by making a brief (but eventful) visit to The Abbey in WeHo with a few girlfriends ... sans 18-year-old Brooklyn. It appears the couple did recently celebrate together, but he obviously couldn't tag along for the bar hop.

As for Chloe, an eyewitness tells us she and 4 pals showed up around 10:30 PM and stayed for about half an hour. And what a half hour it was -- Chloe and her girls ordered some drinks and then got on the dance floor ... eventually calling over a nearby go-go dancer.

Dane Cook is still gettin' it ... canoodling with his hot, 19-year-old girlfriend on the shores of Hawaii.

The 45-year-old actor/comic revealed last month he was dating Kelsi Taylor. She's in show biz too ... trying to make it big as a singer and an actress.

They've been together for awhile ... it's their second trip to Hawaii. They made the trek last July.

This time around they vacationed with 3 friends on the island of Maui ... arriving in a private jet.

BTW ... Dane's never been hitched before and has no kids. He does, however, have a dog, Chopper, so we're guessing Kelsi must love dogs.

Doug Jones, the guy who plays the Amphibian man in "The Shape of Water," is steadfast ... director Guillermo Del Toro didn't steal anything.

We got Jones Saturday night in Hollywood leaving Theater West, where he pooh-poohed reports that Del Toro lifted a scene from the 1991 film, 'Delicatessen."

Jones insists the film -- which is nominated for Best Picture -- is all original. Del Toro is also nominated for Best Director.

Truth be told ... Jones doesn't really know much about the allegation that Del Toro stole a scene, but says he knows enough about his director to know it's not true.

Check out the 2 scenes in question -- from "The Shape of Water" and "Delicatessen" ... and judge for yourself.

Tom Cruise was hanging around the set of "Mission Impossible 6" Saturday in London.

Tom was suspended in the air, near St. Paul's Cathedral, which stands 365 feet high. It use to be the tallest building in London until 1967.

Tom's had lots of problems doing his own stunts for the flick. Back in August he broke his ankle after making a jump, falling short and hitting the side of a building.

He's smiling in the photo, but based on other video that's been shot since the accident, it's pretty clear the 55-year-old actor is not fully recovered.

Cruise has insisted on performing many of the stunts in the "M.I." franchise himself, believing it makes the movie more dramatic and authentic.

We're guessing these days ... producers have been holding their breath a lot.

David Arquette wants to produce a movie with Rob Gronkowski in the worst way.

We got David Friday night in WeHo outside Delilah, and asked about rumors Gronk will hang up his Patriots jersey for a Hollywood acting career.

David says screw Julliard ... acting's about being real, and it don't get more real than Gronk.

Gronk has already tested his acting chops in a movie and has done several commercials, including one for the Madden NFL 17 video game.

Gotta say ... maybe a semester at Julliard wouldn't hurt.

The mini bike from "Dumb and Dumber" -- which Lloyd and Harry rode all the way to Aspen -- is in good running order and looking for a new owner ... but ya can't just trade your Shaggin' Wagon for it.

This "hog" is one of 2 used in the classic 1994 comedy, and we're told it was featured in all the close-up riding scenes with Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. It was gifted to Gordie Merrick, the movie's transportation coordinator, who had it for about 20 years before the current owner acquired it.

The other bike was gifted to Planet Hollywood.

The Houston man who owns this mini bike says he spent over a year fixing it up and restoring it to the original condition, and now it's good to go. We're told he's selling it on eBay with the opening bid starting at $8,500, to make some extra dough because his kid is going off to college.

As an added bonus, the buyer of the bike also gets the helmet, bag and briefcase thrown in ... although those aren't film originals. It also includes a signed and notarized letter of authenticity.

Reginald E. Cathey, who had huge roles in "House of Cards" and "The Wire," has died ... TMZ has learned.

The beloved actor passed away at his home in New York, surrounded by friends and family. We're told he'd been battling lung cancer.

Reg played Freddy, owner of Francis Underwood's fave BBQ joint on "House of Cards." The role earned him the Emmy for Outstanding Guest in 2015.

He also famously played the mayor's aide, Norman Wilson, on several seasons of "The Wire."

He was a hard working character actor in Hollywood for more than 30 years with dozens of roles on TV and in movies ... including "Oz," 'Law & Order: SVU,' 'Fantastic Four,' "The Mask" and "S.W.A.T."

Reg was extremely close to 'Wire' creator David Simon -- he's the only actor Simon hired to work on all of his TV shows. He posted memories of his friend.

Reg was 59.

"Psycho" star John Gavin -- who appeared in several other classics such as "Midnight Lace" and was the US Ambassador to Mexico under Ronald Reagan -- has died.

John -- who played Sam Loomis in the classic horror flick -- died Friday morning ... TMZ has learned. We're told he succumbed to complications from pneumonia and had battled leukemia for a long time.

John was first hospitalized just before Christmas and died just before 6 AM Friday at his Beverly Hills home, surrounded by his family.

Gavin starred as Julius Caesar in "Spartacus" and Steve Archer in "Imitation of Life." He also won a Golden Globe for "A Time to Love and a Time to Die" when he played Ernst Graber.

Gavin leaves behind his wife, Constance Towers, 4 kids and 3 grandchildren. Connie tells TMZ, "We lost our best friend, father and husband. We were so grateful to have him."

He was 86.

A huge Hollywood movie producer claims he and his staff are getting gang threats over the Aaron Hernandez movie he's making ... and now he's asking the court for protection.

The man behind the movie is Mark Gordon -- who's produced huge films like "Saving Private Ryan," "The Patriot" and "Molly's Game." He recently announced a movie based on Aaron Hernandez's life called 'All-American Murder.'

Problem is ... Gordon says another Hollywood producer, Todd Guzze, is pissed -- claiming HE owns the rights to the film and has made threats against him and his employees to get Gordon to stop production.

In court documents obtained by TMZ Sports, Gordon says Guzze left a voicemail referencing two huge street gangs, The Latin Kings and The Bloods -- saying Aaron was a member of both gangs and noting that he was "keeping them at bay right now."

Gordon says Guzze threatened physical harm by saying, "I don't need to tell you how [the gangs] work ... They're right here in L.A."

Gordon says the threats continued online. One message said, "Are you ready? I hope it's worth it."

In the docs, filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Gordon is asking the judge to keep Guzze at least 300 yards from his office and all of his employees.

We reached out to Guzze, who tells TMZ Sports, "Mark Gordon has taken this too far. Aaron Hernandez is a very sensitive story and I've made him aware on multiple occasions that no one is doing this story but the family and the original partners that were closely tied to Aaron and his estate."

Sally Kirkland got a horrific and deep forehead gash patched up in an emergency surgery, and she's recovering, but on her way into the hospital ... it looked touch and go.

A rep for the Oscar-nominated actress tells TMZ ... Sally returned to her L.A. home Thursday night after the surgery at NYC's Cornell Hospital. We're told she's still under medical supervision and is scheduled for ongoing treatment for head trauma.

Sally's rep tells us the accident is under investigation, and suggests the building didn't take proper measures to ensure Sally's safety. We're told it was raining heavily and she slipped on a wet floor.

As we reported ... 76-year-old Sally was rushed to the hospital after suffering the fall following a radio appearance on SiriusXM. She had to have surgery because the injury was too severe for stitches.

Quentin Tarantino is issuing a mea culpa after old comments he made live on the air about Roman Polanski's child rape victim were met with rage.

Tarantino issued a statement Thursday, apologizing to Polanski's then-13-year-old victim, Samantha Geimer, after a 2003 interview with Howard Stern surfaced, during which he said the sex was "not rape" ... and that Geimer "wanted to have it."

Geimer addressed the controversy Tuesday, saying Tarantino's comments were "wrong" and "I bet he knows it."

In his apology, obtained by Indiewire, Tarantino responded, saying he's sorry for his "cavalier remarks." He also explicitly acknowledges Geimer "WAS raped by Roman Polanski" ... adding he "incorrectly played devil's advocate for the sake of being provocative."

Tarantino adds ... "So, Ms. Geimer, I was ignorant, and insensitive, and above all, incorrect. I am sorry Samantha."