Movies

Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have a large staff handling their day-to-day, but one chore is strictly hands on -- going shoppin' for an XMAS tree!

Ben, Jen and their brood hit up a vacant lot in Santa Monica Saturday ... littered with Douglas and other firs.

So many to choose from! The fam got downright pensive and they inspected various options. It's an important one for sure ... it's their first tree as a married couple.

They spent quite a bit of time at the lot, eventually settling on what looked like a balsam fir -- a huge one -- that they tied to their SUV as they beat it.

Everyone seemed to have a voice in the choice ... including Max, Emme, Seraphina and Samuel. Looks like Violet was MIA.

Madonna's MTV VMA for one of her iconic '80s hits will be sitting on a lucky -- and probably wealthy -- fan's shelf soon.

RR Auction tells TMZ ... Madonna's Moonman -- AKA MTV Video Music Award -- for her 1986 song "Papa Don't Preach" is now on the auction block with an estimated price tag of $60K.

It's a cool part of pop history ... the song was released as a single from her album "True Blue," and it became Madonna's 4th number one hit.

The track's all about dealing with teen pregnancy and abortion which, as you can imagine, stirred up plenty of controversies back then.

That also fueled buzz for the song which earned Madge 3 VMA nominations and a Grammy nom for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

If ya can't get your hands on the Madonna memorabilia, there's other cool stuff on this particular auction block -- including a Nirvana signed "In Utero" CD booklet, which is going for an estimated $12K!!!

Tom Hanks' military uniform worn on-screen in the 1994 flick "Forrest Gump" is also up for grabs in the auction, which ends December 7.

Big Daddy Kane is starring in a theater production of 'New Jack City' -- which he says is touring now ... and which is going to be hosting the director of the cult classic in due time.

We got the rap legend in New York this week ... where our photog chopped it up with BDK about the Je'Caryous Johnson's 'NJC Live on Stage' -- a Broadway-like play that brings the movie to life in front of audiences all these years later.

Check out the clip, 'cause Kane's got some cool insights for us -- including the fact that actor Allen Payne (who played Gee Money in the OG) is reprising his role in this new cast!

Not just that, but Kane says Mario Van Peebles -- who directed 'New Jack City,' and also acted in it as the cop who was out to bring down Wesley Snipes' operation -- will be coming to check out the show when they come to L.A.'s Orpheum Theater in late January.

The reason that's significant -- beyond the fact that it's awesome to host MVP at all -- is 'cause Big Daddy is actually playing his character from the movie ... AKA, Stone. Kane says Mario's swinging by to take it all in, and maybe give him some notes on performance.

Ya gotta wonder if Wesley himself has caught wind of the play and if he's curious to give it a peek. He hasn't said anything about it, from what we can tell, on social media thus far.

The reason there's so many unlikeable female leads is because Hollywood is all in on "Mary Sue" -- so says one writer ... whose hot take is getting blasted as straight-up misogyny.

A fella named Joshua Lisec -- who's ghostwritten a ton of books over the years -- took to Twitter this week to outline a very long argument he firmly believes in ... namely, that the literary "Mary Sue" archetype is alive and thriving in modern-day entertainment, despite the fact people aren't really into these strong fictional heroines who kick ass out of nowhere.

His words ... not ours.

Essentially, this boils down to characters like Rey (Daisy Ridley, 'Star Wars'), Galadriel (Morfydd Clark, "Rings of Power"), Carol Danvers (Brie Larson, "Captain Marvel") and even Bo Peep (Annie Potts, "Toy Story 4") and others who start out in a new plot as bad to the bone ... despite a lack of training/backstory to explain how they came to be so strong.

Now, whether that definition of a typical Mary Sue actually applies to the above-mentioned characters -- and other female leads in action movies in general -- is what's at debate here.

Lisec's thread has gone viral, with a ton of backlash coming his way for what a lot of people claim is a convoluted and long-winded way to say ... he simply doesn't like women, and can't stand the idea of a female character being anything other than a damsel in distress.

There are others poking holes in his theory ... at one point during which he makes comparisons to classic male leads whom he thinks were properly fleshed out (Luke Skywalker, etc.) Some are offering examples of countless traditional male heroes who've emerged with unexplained powers ... noting Mary Sue is a dog whistle to attack women.

As for why this convo is even taking place ... well, it appears there are some, like Lisec, who feel there is, in fact, a push from Hollywood lately for "strong female leads" who emerge as heroes without a bona fide, solid setup. The forthcoming 'Indiana Jones' flick appears to be positioning Phoebe Waller-Bridge's character for exactly that (the "new Indy" post-Ford).

This isn't a sentiment that's super fringe either ... Emily Blunt has denounced the "strong female lead" label -- basically saying it was being done to death, and that she's over it.

Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds' longtime family home in Central California has a brand new owner ... we've learned it just sold.

Real estate sources tell TMZ ... Debbie and Carrie's ranch in Creston -- which is about 3 hours north of L.A. in San Luis Obispo County -- sold Thursday for the asking price of $2.85 million.

The famous mother and daughter had owned the ranch for the last 30 years.

We're told Debbie's son and Carrie's brother, Todd, put the 7-bed, 8-bath home up for sale back in September.

The 44-acre estate comes with all the extras you'd imagine for Hollywood royalty, including a library, bar and a private screening room ... where the fam enjoyed its 5,000-movie library of Hollywood classics.

The living room features a showcase grand piano used by Debbie and all the great crooners who performed in her Las Vegas showroom.

There are 2 separate buildings from the main house that include a recording studio, office and storage space -- all totaling 17,000 square feet!!!

The property is tucked away in a private valley with native deer, a natural spring and access to geothermal and solar power.

As we've reported, a portion of Carrie's ashes were placed in a coffin and buried alongside Debbie in 2017 ... as they sadly passed away only one day apart.

Hollywood is back at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., where President Biden's finally getting to entertain a foreign dignitary -- French President Emmanuel Macron -- as well as famous supporters.

Thursday night marks the return of swanky state dinners ... as the COVID pandemic forced Biden to cancel such events for the first 2 years of his administration, but the celebs are flocking back to the White House. No shocker.

John Legend and Chrissy Teigen are in the house, along with Stephen Colbert, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jennifer Garner and Ariana DeBose.

Apple CEO Tim Cook scored an invite too ... he's having a pretty loaded week, just yesterday he was meeting with Elon Musk at Apple HQ in Cali, smoothing things over with Twitter.

All the pomp and circumstance is for France ... Biden's working to repair the U.S. relationship with the European power.

These celebs are among 300 guests at the black-tie dinner, with folks dining on the best cheese America can offer Macron ... plus Maine lobster, beef with shallot marmalade and triple-cooked butter potatoes.

There's live music too ... Dr. Jill Biden booked Grammy-winning musician and composer Jon Batiste, in part because he's from New Orleans, which Jill notes "has been shaped by both French and American culture."

Comedian and actor Affion Crockett thinks Will Smith has another Oscar contender on his hands for his work in "Emancipation" ... and says it would be unfair if the "mistake" of slapping Chris Rock leads to award season snubs.

We got Affion Thursday at LAX, where he told us about getting to see Will's slavery-era drama, and he's certain the movie will be in Oscar contention, and ditto for its lead actor.

As you know, Will's 10-year Oscars ban doesn't prevent him from getting nominated or even winning -- a fact Affion thinks Academy voters should keep in mind, because he sees Will's "Emancipation" performance as "masterful."

As for that beyond infamous Oscars slap of Chris ... Affion's genuinely shocked the world's still focusing on it now that it's over 8 months later.

Despite that fact, he thinks there's a shot the Academy could reevaluate that 10-year ban.

FYI, Affion's also dealt with stage stormers before ... as we reported, he was performing in Florida last year when a woman charged onstage to criticize his act.

Brad William Henke, a former NFL player who later got into acting and appeared in "Orange Is The New Black," has died ... TMZ has confirmed.

Brad died in his sleep Tuesday, according to sources connected to his family. The cause of death is unclear.

Brad's most famous for playing one of the prison guards in 'OITNB' -- and he's in the scene where one of the show's main characters, Poussey Washington, is killed off -- one of the biggest scenes in the entire series.

He also had roles in TV shows like "Justified" and "Lost" ... appearing in movies including "Pacific Rim" and "World Trade Center."

Brad started acting after retiring from the NFL in 1994, hanging up his cleats due to ankle injuries. He played his college ball at the University of Arizona before being drafted in 1989 by the New York Giants.

A defensive lineman, Brad also played for the Denver Broncos and got on the field in Super Bowl XXIV against the San Francisco 49ers.

Brad first got into Hollywood by acting in commercials, then he started landing TV guest spots on series like "ER," "Arli$$," "Nash Bridges," "Silk Stalkings" and "Chicago Hope."

With over 100 acting credits to his name, Brad also appeared in "CSI," "Judging Amy," "Crossing Jordan" and "Dexter" ... among many others.

His manager, Matt DelPiano, tells us, "Brad was an incredibly kind man of joyous energy. A very talented actor, he loved being a part of this community….and we loved him back. Our thoughts are with his wife and family.”

Brad was 56.

Actor Frank Vallelonga Jr., famous for his work in the Oscar-winning "Green Book," has died ... TMZ has confirmed.

The NYPD tells TMZ ... police responded Monday morning to a 911 call about an unconscious man in the Bronx, and when they got there they found a dead body in the street, which was later identified as Frank.

Cops say the Medical Examiner will determine an official cause of death. Meanwhile, police tell us a suspect has been criminally charged with dumping Frank's corpse. Cops also say the suspect told police Frank overdosed.

Frank's late father is "Sopranos" star Tony Lip, who played New York mob boss Carmine Lupertazzi in the HBO series ... and his brother, Nick Vallelonga, is the co-writer and producer for "Green Book," which won two Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture.

In fact, "Green Book" is about Frank's father ... Tony worked as a bouncer and was hired to drive and protect pianist Don Shirley during an early 1960s tour through the Jim Crow South. In the movie, Viggo Mortensen portrays Tony and Frank plays his other brother, Rudy Vallelonga.

Cops say the suspect dumped Frank's body from a car owned by Nick -- but Nick told police the suspect did not have permission or authority to drive the car.

Frank was 60.

Will Smith is all smiles again ... he and Jada Pinkett Smith were back doing movie star stuff for the premiere of the new film days after he called his Oscars slap on Chris Rock a burst of anger years in the making.

Will and Jada got all done up Wednesday night in Westwood where they held the "Emancipation" premiere -- they posed for the photogs on their way into the theater and held onto each other tightly.

There was one moment that seemed like a loving callback to the drama of Oscars night -- Will kissed the top of Jada's head as cameras were flashing.

The event was definitely a family affair -- Jaden, Willow, and Trey were all there to support their pops on his return to the Hollywood spotlight.

As we reported, Will broke down what led up to him storming the stage to strike Chris ... telling Trevor Noah on Monday it stemmed from rage going back to his childhood.

He also made a plea to the audience, telling them to be nice to each other ... because you never know what another person's going through, but he noted that didn't justify his behavior.

The controversial, antisemitic film Kyrie Irving shared on Twitter -- "Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America!" -- is not being removed from Amazon ... says company CEO Andy Jassy.

"As a retailer of content to hundreds of millions of customers with a lot of different viewpoints, we have to allow access to those viewpoints, even if they are objectionable — objectionable and they differ from our particular viewpoints, Jassy said, who is Jewish, at The New York Times' DealBook Summit in New York City.

Jassy's comments come in the face of the retail giant facing public backlash for still carrying the book and film on its platform, which Irving shared last month.

"The reality is that we have very expansive customer reviews," he continued ... "For books with a lot of attention — especially public attention — customers do a good job monitoring other people."

Jassy told the New York Times it's a slippery slope when deciding what type of content should no longer be sold on the platform ... adding instances where violence or pedophilia is being encouraged is more "straightforward."

Of course, Jassy's comments aren't going to sit well with Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), who publicly campaigned for Amazon to join Barnes & Noble in taking the book/film down.

Bobby Brown has a lot to look forward to next year … especially hitting the road with his New Edition brothers Ralph, Ronnie, Mike, Ricky and Johnny for a new world tour!!!

We linked with Bobby Wednesday at LAX, and he was eager to spill the tea on their upcoming shows. Although the group's had legendary ups and downs since their debut in the '80s -- like Bobby leaving to launch a solo career -- BB tells us their brotherhood is too strong to ever fully break.

NE is undeniably one of the most celebrated R&B groups of all time. They've been in the game for about 40 years, and every member's had success outside the group, too -- be it hip hop supergroup Bell Biv DeVoe or solo hits from Ralph, Johnny and, of course, Bobby.

All of that adds up to fans flocking to see them whenever they tour ... so, no surprise the fellas are running it back next year.

One thing Bobby's not anticipating is the upcoming Whitney Houston biopic "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" ... which will likely document their turbulent life and times together in the '90s.

Bobby says he had zero involvement in 'I Wanna Dance' so he can't cosign on its quality, or the performance of Ashton Sanders ... the actor who's portraying him in the film.

The scooter rider who fatally struck "Gone Girl" actress Lisa Banes in a hit-and-run accident will do hard time ... a judge just sentenced him to at least a year behind bars.

Lisa's killer, 27-year-old Brian Boyd, was sentenced Wednesday to 1 to 3 years in prison in New York County Supreme Court.

Boyd had been awaiting sentencing since September, when he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and leaving the scene of an incident resulting in death without reporting it to authorities. Prosecutors were seeking a 3 to 9-year sentence.

As we reported ... back in June 2021, Lisa was using a crosswalk in NYC when she was struck by Boyd, who was riding an electric moped.

Boyd then left the scene. Lisa was taken to a hospital for her injuries, but died 10 days later.

Cops arrested Boyd a couple months after Lisa's death ... and prosecutors say he was barreling through a red light on the moped when he struck her.

Lisa, famous for her roles in "Gone Girl" and "Cocktail," was 65 when she was killed.

Chevy Chase is going full Clark Griswold and plugging in to recreate one of the funniest 'Christmas Vacation' scenes for a fast food chain ... and once again, it's a real beaut!!!

The actor teamed up with Raising Cane's founder Todd Graves Tuesday night in the Chicago suburb of Morton Grove, IL for some festive fun -- and Chevy had all the power as they handed him a couple of extension cords to light the hell outta one of their restaurants.

The Cane's location has more than 13,000 lights, a Santa Claus, reindeer and sleigh -- almost as over-the-top as the display Clark juiced up in the 'National Lampoon' holiday classic.

They did not recreate the hilarious power outage and house fire from the movie -- but a crowd of more than 500 showed up to join in on the holiday cheer ... including a bunch of carolers and a whole marching band.

Chevy and Todd drove off in Clark's iconic (and hideous) wood-paneled "Queen Family Truckster" station wagon.

The display's staying up for the holidays, so 'Christmas Vacation' fans can get their grub on and snap a photo op with the elaborate setup.

Metro Boomin is treating his upcoming album "Heroes & Villains" like a movie premiere -- and he's got quite the blockbuster cast ensemble for his new short film!!!

Staged in Superman's hometown of "Metropolis," the "Heroes & Villains" mini-movie stars Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox the trusty narrator, LaKeith Stanfield as a deranged driver of a flame-throwing truck.

Currently-incarcerated YSL members Young Thug and Gunna also make lighthearted cameos as a pair of bumbling anchormen.

The Gibson Hazard-directed clip gives off big-time superhero energy … especially once Metro dons his Boominati chain and hops into his Metromobile, which isn't as cheesy as it sounds!!!

Metro and Morgan are tight, having previously collaborated on the 2020 album "Savage Mode II" with 21 Savage -- Freeman's voice is heard on one of the tracks.

Jonah Hill is gunning to legally change his name, but you won't need to call him anything different -- it just means lots of paperwork for him ... or his assistant.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, the actor -- whose real name is Jonah Hill Feldstein -- filed a petition this week in L.A. to legally drop Feldstein from his name. So, he's just making his stage name official.

The docs say Jonah simply wants the name he's publicly gone by for years to be his legal handle. It is all the rage these days.

As we reported, Aaron Paul, whose last name is actually Sturtevant, also filed for a legal change to Paul earlier this month.

AP's wife Lauren, and their son Ryden Caspian, also want to change their last names. One big happy, legal Paul family.