Movies

Shaun Weiss, the goalie in the 'Mighty Ducks' movie, has scored a hat trick -- finishing a court-ordered drug program, getting a criminal case dismissed ... and most importantly, getting his life back on track.

The D.A.'s Office in Yuba County, CA praised Shaun for successfully completing the drug court program. As we've reported, Shaun's struggled with addiction for years ... but he was recently in court -- dressed to the nines in a three-piece suit, mind you -- to proudly receive his certificate from the judge.

He'd entered the program back in March 2020 after getting busted for burglary.

The D.A.'s Office said Shaun has "demonstrated perseverance during his recovery complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. He had to move treatment and transitional living programs on several occasions. He underwent dental reconstructive surgery, and had a close family member suffer a serious accident during his treatment."

The D.A. added, "Shaun regained employment and has been traveling across the country making guest appearances and signing autographs. He received tremendous support from friends and fans of the character, Goldberg, he played in the 1992 hit 'The Mighty Ducks.'"

For staying on the straight and narrow his burglary case has been dismissed.

As we reported ... Shaun looked unrecognizable back in January 2020 when he was busted for residential burglary. Cops said they found Shaun trying to steal stuff from a car in someone's garage.

Since then, Shaun's been doing the work, and slowly getting his life together -- from getting sober to beaming with pride thanks to that new set of chompers.

Michaela Coel is rumored to be in the new "Black Panther" sequel -- now being filmed after Chadwick Boseman's death -- and it's got fans wondering ... curtains for Letitia Wright???

Word of the casting just came down Wednesday via Variety, which says the "I May Destroy You" star is definitely in it ... but that her role, for now, is unknown/unnamed and being kept under wraps. The studio itself isn't confirming either ... SOP for stories like this.

The report -- assuming it's true -- might not seem like much on its face ... but there's a lot of background here causing some eyebrows to be raised in suspicion. Fact is, Marvel's been slow to formally announce who the heck is actually going to be in the new movie, like for sure for sure -- which is weird, because the flick is literally filming in Atlanta right now.

The assumption is that a majority of the cast from Pt. 1 will return -- like Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, etc. -- but none of them, including Letitia (who had a major role the first time around) are sure things at this point ... and in light of this news, it's giving folks pause for LW's sake.

Here's the deal ... Letitia is the only member of the OG cast who's been embroiled in controversy lately -- and there's a ton of circumstantial evidence that seems to point to her having bad blood with Marvel and perhaps Disney at large.

Based on tweets she's liked in the recent past -- before scrubbing all her social media entirely not too long ago -- all signs point to her possibly not returning ... and that recasting her might be on the horizon, which is why the Michaela addition is fueling theories.

Pile on the fact she was accused of being an anti-vaxxer just this past December -- this after retweeting what many called conspiracy theory videos questioning the legitimacy of the jab -- it just adds even more reason to believe that Letitia may be done with the franchise.

That's a huge deal, and a potential huge blow (for Letitia) if it turns out Michaela is, in fact, going to play an older version of Shuri (T'Challa's sister in 'BP'). The reason ... Shuri actually becomes the new Black Panther after T'Challa passes on the torch in the comic book series.

While the plot details of the "Black Panther" sequel have yet to surface -- ya gotta imagine they're going to go that route since their lead man isn't around to do it anymore.

Harvey Weinstein's back on the West Coast, and just faced the judge in his L.A. sexual assault case -- he's now been formally indicted, and denied wrongdoing ... with an official plea.

The one-time movie producer appeared in person for a hearing Wednesday in an L.A. County courthouse where the 11 charges he's facing were read to him, one by one.

The charges are for alleged sexual assaults over several years, involving 5 different women. In response, Weinstein entered a not guilty plea -- something he was expected to do based on how he'd pled in the recent past.

Now, we're told Weinstein will remain in the custody of L.A. authorities while the case is pending. If it ends up going to trial -- which it appears it will at this point -- that could mean he'll be here for a long time.

As we reported ... Weinstein was extradited from NY to L.A. Tuesday. TMZ posted the first shots of HW getting off the plane, and he appeared to be in civilian clothes ... not a prison jumpsuit. Remember, he's already doing hard time in a NY state prison for sexual assault.

Joe Pytka -- the director of Michael Jordan's original "Space Jam" -- is going off on LeBron James' reboot, calling it an uninteresting mess ... and that's about the nicest thing he has to say.

Pytka -- who's also known for directing popular music videos and commercials in the '80s and '90s, including the "I Am Tiger Woods" ad -- tells TMZ ... "Space Jam: A New Legacy" is so boring, he couldn't finish it in one sitting.

In fact, he says it took him 5 separate sessions to complete its 2-hour runtime.

The director has several issues with the reboot, starting with LBJ. Pytka points out when "Space Jam" was made in 1996, MJ wasn't just the best basketball player ... he was the biggest celebrity in the world.

Joe says LeBron's an incredible athlete and a very good actor, but adds ... "The truth is that LeBron ain't Michael." On top of that, Pytka says his film tied the plot to MJ's personal life -- retiring from hoops to play baseball -- while the new movie's missing a personal connection to LeBron.

Pytka's just getting started ... he feels the 1996 "Space Jam" featured a far superior supporting cast with Charles Barkley, Muggsy Bogues, Shawn Bradley and Bill Murray. In 'New Legacy' ... he says he can't even remember one thing Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard or the others did.

The director also thinks the reboot's soundtrack is "insignificant" while the OG's is classic, but his biggest beef is what happened to Bugs Bunny. No spoilers here, but Joe sees Bugs' role in 'New Legacy' as "heartbreaking."

Pytka says this new BB has no connection to previous depictions -- something they paid close attention to with the OG "Space Jam." In short, he says the new version "looked like one of those fluffy dolls you buy at an airport gift shop to bring your kid when your business trip has taken too long."

Take all this with a grain of salt, because Joe acknowledges his "Space Jam" was mostly panned by critics -- just like this reboot -- but it still became a cult classic.

New York native Andy Milonakis blasted onto the scene in 2005 with wacky antics, a bizarre hip hop career and viral video moments -- all while confusing audiences with his prepubescent appearance even though he was nearly 30 years old -- that culminated with his MTV sketch comedy program "The Andy Milonakis Show."

Andy went on to find big parts in movies like "Waiting..." and "Mac & Devin Go to High School" ... but he's found much more success doing voice-over work in animated programs like "Adventure Time" and "Future-Worm!"

Attorney Lee Merritt believes his battle to become attorney general of Texas is not as uphill as people think ... because he's confident he can work with law enforcement to give his campaign the boost needed to win.

The renowned civil rights lawyer -- who's represented the families of Botham Jean, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd among many others -- joined "TMZ Live" Tuesday to discuss his chances in the AG race ... and give his take on Matthew McConaughey running for Texas governor.

Merritt acknowledges he's facing a major challenge as a Democrat running in a traditionally red state, but insists police are on his side ... especially good cops who are already working to improve the system.

Sounds like he thinks his campaign's focus on new ideas -- involving voter rights, fixing the state's power grid and ending mass incarceration -- can energize enough new voters to lead him to victory.

Speaking of energy ... Merritt says McConaughey can be the gubernatorial candidate who brings a lot of it to the state elections, and he's hopeful the actor will throw his hat in the ring soon.

The big mystery, of course, is if the actor does launch a campaign on the heels of his uniting message to Americans ... will he run as a Dem, Republican or Independent???

Harvey Weinstein is currently aboard an airplane for the first time in over a year -- but it's not for any type of vacay ... the guy's on his way to L.A. to face even more charges.

The disgraced movie producer's attorney, Mark Werksman, tells TMZ ... Weinstein's legal team was notified their client is being extradited Tuesday, and is said to be on a flight right now from New York to Los Angeles for a possible hearing in court Wednesday.

Another attorney of Weinstein's, Norman Effman, adds that he believes Weinstein is on a federal aircraft medically equipped to handle his many ailments. We haven't confirmed that just yet, though. In any case, it sounds like HW is California-bound for the first time in a while.

Remember, he's been on the East Coast since at least 2019 ... fighting a rape case that he was ultimately convicted in just last year, and sentenced to 23 years behind bars. That was just a New York matter, though ... he's still got Los Angeles charges to face, which is why he's being brought out here.

As we've reported ... Weinstein was indicted on 11 counts of sexual assault involving 5 different women, following an investigation on the heels of scores of women coming forward to accuse him of either sexual misconduct, or full-blown assault ... coast-to-coast.

As for how exactly this transfer is supposed to go down ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ that the FBI is assisting in transporting Weinstein from NY to LA, and will turn him over to the authorities when they touch down.

Weinstein's rep, Juda Engelmayer, tells TMZ ... despite trying to negotiate an agreement to waive Weinstein's extradition, he knew this would probably be coming eventually. Engelmayer also says he's disappointed in the L.A. County District Attorney for not waiting for a judge's ruling.

Engelmayer says the team will be fighting for Weinstein to receive the medical care he needs, while also adding he has a right to due process ... and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Dr. Dre's son, Curtis Young, is ready to step out from his father's shadow and make a name for himself in Hollywood ... and he's doing it by landing a starring role in a feature film.

Curtis tells TMZ ... he's not only starring in the new film, "Charge It to the Game," but also composing original music for the movie.

The film is a coming-of-age story about 4 best friends finding their way through adolescence and navigating obstacles along the way ... and Curtis says he's playing the role of Kong, one of the friends' older brothers.

It's pretty cool ... Curtis says his character's younger brother is being played by Snoop Dogg's son, Julian Broadus ... and Swizz Beat's son, Nasir Dean, is playing one of the 4 best friends.

Curtis, who says he's always wanted to get into acting because art's in his blood, will score the film with Nasir.

His big break's been a long time coming ... Curtis had auditioned to play his father in "Straight Out of Compton," but didn't get the part, even though he felt he had a good shot.

Renee Zellweger and Ant Anstead are looking like they're all in for their relationship -- all in each other's arms, and all in each other's mouths ... based on their beach PDA session.

The duo some have deemed the rando hookup of the year were chilling Saturday in the sand of Laguna Beach, and they were all over each other -- hugging and making out like a couple of teenagers.

From the way they were going at it, you'd never guess they had a baby in tow. Yeah, imagine how Ant's son, Hudson, was feeling during all that kissing!! Ehh, he's one ... he won't remember it.

The hot and heavy beach date seals it -- Renee and Ant are the real deal. TMZ broke the story ... they first met last month when she was a guest on his Discovery+ show, "Celebrity IOU Joyride." Since then, we've seen 'em out doing some shopping together, but Saturday marked their first romantic outing ... in public, anyway.

As we reported, Ant and Christina Haack recently finalized their divorce, and will share custody of Hudson.

Ant's beach date with Renee went down near his oceanfront home, and as cozy and comfortable as she's looking ... ponder this: Renee Zellweger, OC housewife???

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez like it, and they're about to put a ring on it -- a housekey ring ... because the couple's jumping to the house hunting stage of their reunion!!!

Bennifer 2.0 was out and about Thursday in L.A.'s upscale Holmby Hills neighborhood, and they had a high-end realtor escorting them to check out a few mansions. J Lo and Ben followed in their own vehicle, stealing a few kisses along the route ... perhaps to celebrate finding their dream home.

We know one of the pads they toured is a $65 million, 31,000 square-foot palace with 8 bedrooms and 12 bathrooms. That's tons of room for them and their 5 kids ... who we're sure would love some of its fun features.

The pad's got a freakin' bowling alley!

Our sources say the couple checked out at least 3 mansions during the shopping trip, which comes a little more than 2 months after they grabbed headlines again by hanging out in Montana ... shortly after J Lo's split from A-Rod.

They've been pretty inseparable ever since ... including a romantic hook-up in Miami, date night in Beverly Hills ... and a trip to the Hamptons with Jen's kids.

Ben even had his children hanging with J Lo's daughter, Emme, last weekend at Universal City Walk for some modern family fun.

Hawaiian hottie Tia Carrere was only 25 years old when she rocked her role as the sexy singing girlfriend Cassandra Wong -- who fronts the band Crucial Taunt and is pursued by the slick and sleazy big-wig Benjamin -- in the classic 1992 comedy "Wayne's World" and the 1993 sequel "Wayne's World 2."

TC shared the big screen with some big-named actors including Rob Lowe as the smarmy suit, Benjamin Kane ... and of course Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as the show-hosting best friends Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar.

Before her role in the rock movies Tia could be spotted in over thirty episodes of the TV soap "General Hospital" as Jade Soong in the late '80s.

Sacha Baron Cohen is pissed at a cannabis company he claims is plastering his "Borat" character on one of its giant billboards ... and now he's suing over it.

The actor filed suit against Solar Therapeutics, where he alleges the company is using his famous persona to sell medical marijuana in Massachusetts ... where Borat's face appears on the advertisement, next to one of his trademark lines, "It's nice."

Well, Sacha doesn't think it is.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Sacha claims Solar Therapeutics is pulling a fast one by using Borat on the ad -- which stands next to an interstate -- because he has no connection whatsoever to the company.

In fact, Sacha says he doesn't even smoke weed -- a major bummer to many "Borat" fans, we suspect -- and would never join an ad campaign for pot. No offense to those who do indulge, we're sure.

Sacha is going after the cannabis company for at least $9 million in damages ... and he wants the court to block Solar from using his name, image and likeness to hawk its products.

Tom Cruise made the rounds in London for the city's mega sports weekend, but he was still mindful of COVID-19 protocols ... at least while mingling with fans.

A day after Ethan Hunt dropped in for the Wimbledon women's singles final, he made his way over to Wembley Stadium to watch the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy.

Tom was all smiles as he obliged some fan requests for a quick pic before he headed in to watch the match Sunday evening, but take a look ... he was also very cautious about it.

The "Mission Impossible" star kept his mask on until it was time to say cheese, and even then he mostly kept his distance ... telling folks to keep a flying-V formation.

As you may know ... the Delta variant has been responsible for the most coronavirus infections in England recently, so it seems Cruise is taking that risk seriously.

Then again, once he was inside Wembley Tom ditched the mask and showed off his famous face ... while sitting near other famous faces, like Kate Moss and David Beckham.

Cruise really took advantage of being in England this weekend while shooting "M:I 7" ... as we reported, he and his co-stars also attended a Wimbledon finals match on Saturday.

Ben Affleck was on dad (and possibly stepdad) duty this weekend -- with not just his kids in tow, but with one of the children of his beloved, Jennifer Lopez, too ... the first time we've actually seen that happen.

The actor was out Sunday with his son, Samuel, his daughter, Seraphina ... plus, J Lo's 13-year-old daughter, Emme -- who was out there rockin' the blue-green hair. Seraphina is right around Emme's age ... and Sam's a bit younger at 9. Still though, they all seemed chummy.

Ben, meanwhile, had his hands full ... with a ton of Wetzel Pretzel snacks and some drinks for good measure. They were out at the Universal City Walk, with some adult companions (possibly nannies/security guards) tagging along as well. No sign of Jen or her boy, Max, here.

No matter ... because this itself is a HUGE step toward blending their family units -- much like Jennifer was doing with A-Rod when they were engaged not too long ago. Their kids were constantly hanging out with one another -- and now, it seems Bennifer's doing the same.

There's even more evidence that Jen and Ben are seriously intertwining their personal lives -- just a couple days ago, J Lo was spotted out with Max ... touring a school in L.A. We'd already seen her doing some of that on her own a little while ago -- but this time, she brought the kid to check things out too.

Dwayne Johnson is stuck between a rock and a hard place -- not being able to *easily* access a path to his car so he could get his sweat on ... all because of a hungry hawk.

The Rock couldn't really leave his house Sunday morning -- which he definitely wanted to, so he could hit the gym -- and it's all due to a gorgeous hawk that perched itself on a pillar right outside his kitchen ... with none other than some breakfast in its talons -- a tasty snake!!!

Check out the video ... DJ has a front-row seat to a feast courtesy of Mother Nature -- the hawk's got a relatively small snake in its clutches ... and it pecking away, first at its head and then at its tail. That's good eating -- at least, that's what Dwayne thinks. 😋

Anyway, The Rock laid out the sitch clearly in his caption ... writing, "I tried to open the door with some firm DJ energy and instead of flying away, he got pissed and hasn’t stopped ka kaw’ng me since 🤣." DTRJ adds, "Clearly, we both have a few things in common 😈💀 but he’s gotta eat and I gotta train…. Wish me luck, this could get ugly."

Dwayne leaves us on a bit of a cliffhanger ... although, it seems he was going to make a run for it and see if he could get past the hawk without getting scratched or attacked.

Jodie Turner-Smith's Cannes Film Festival visit came to an abrupt halt this weekend -- this after having to talk to cops about someone jacking her jewels ... according to a new report.

The "Queen & Slim" actress -- who was there promoting her new film, "After Yang" -- filed a police report Sunday after an alleged theft from her hotel room from this past Friday, which left her out a ton of money ... so says Variety, citing sources familiar with the situation.

The outlet reports that Jodie spent a good amount of time with officers Sunday ... something she herself shed some light on through her Twitter account, writing -- "didn’t think i would be spending 2.5 hours in the police station on my final day in cannes, but here we are…"

According to Variety ... the estimated value of the jewelry taken was somewhere in the ballpark of several tens of thousands of euros -- which is a heck a lot of greenbacks, too.