Netflix

Netflix's new 'Black Mirror' movie rips off a popular children's book series and takes it to a dark place, according to the folks behind "Choose Your Own Adventure" ... who've chosen to file a $25 million lawsuit.

Chooseco, the company that owns the 'CYOA' trademark, claims Netflix's 'Bandersnatch' jacked its popular idea without ever getting permission. In the suit, the publisher says it was in negotiations with Netflix to develop a series for years, but they never closed a deal.

Chooseco adds, Netflix deliberately tried to connect with the audience's nostalgia for the popular '80s and '90s 'CYOA' books ... according to the suit. The publisher says it was blatant too, with 'CYOA' being mentioned by name in the first few minutes of 'Bandersnatch.'

If you haven't seen it, 'Bandersnatch' is an interactive experience that allows viewers to choose the direction of the plot, but Chooseco says the choices can take the movie in a direction that includes "references to and depictions of a demonic presence, violent fighting, drug use, murder, mutilation of a corpse, decapitation, and other upsetting imagery."

The publisher says these dark and violent themes are way too mature for the target audience of its book series ... so the association with this "grim content" tarnishes its brand.

Malik Henry -- the star of "Last Chance U" -- is getting one more shot to play FBS football .. 'cause the QB is walking on at Nevada this season -- his new head coach just announced.

Henry -- a top high school recruit in 2016 who signed with Florida State -- flamed out with the Noles ... and transferred to Independence Community College in Kansas just months later.

Malik became a star at the school -- mostly for the drama that surrounded him on Season 3 of Netflix's uber-popular "Last Chance U" show.

He was often portrayed as the bad guy ... feuding with coaches and teammates and even being described by coach Jason Brown at one point as, "f*cking borderline being kicked out any minute."

Malik stuck with the school for two seasons ... but it appears his time at the program and on the show has ended ... 'cause Wolfpack coach Jay Norvell says Malik's joining the squad.

"He spent some time at junior college and probably has one last shot to get his career corrected and we're going to give that," Norvell told Nevada Sports Net.

"He needs a coaching staff that will love him and teach him how to do things the right way and in a system he can grow and develop, and that's something we feel like we have here at Nevada."

Playing time for Malik ain't gonna be easy ... Nevada's got a crowded and talented QB room -- but Henry does have two seasons to play at his new school.

Kevin Spacey appeared in a Nantucket court to face the charge of felony indecent assault ... and interestingly he did not enter a plea.

Spacey has said in legal docs he was pleading not guilty, but the judge never asked him to enter a plea.

Spacey was ordered not to have any contact with the alleged victim or his family.

The actor's lawyer has said there are texts between the alleged victim and his girlfriend at the time of the incident and later as well. The alleged victim told cops his girlfriend didn't believe he was being assaulted by Spacey and he sent her a very short Snapchat video, showing a hand on clothes but not genitals

Spacey's lawyer asked the judge to preserve texts and cellphone records between the alleged victim and his girlfriend from July 7, 2016 to the present. Spacey's lawyer said he believes those texts were "likely exculpatory" -- translation, proof that Spacey didn't assault the then 18-year-old at a Nantucket bar.

His legal team requested he be allowed to skip the hearing, arguing it would "amplify the negative publicity already generated in connection with the case." The judge shot him down, though, and ordered Spacey to get his ass to court to enter his plea in person.

Spacey's lawyer claims the actor's contact with the 18-year-old was consensual, pointing to what he claims was 3-minutes of touching without the young man ever objecting.

Sandra Bullock's latest hit movie is racking up record-setting Netflix views, sparking tons of memes ... and also turning a small California suburb into a tourist attraction.

Small spoiler alert ... there's a house in "Bird Box" where the film's stars take refuge from an evil force. The exterior shots of the property -- including the stone stairway entrance -- were not shot on a studio back lot, but at a real home in Monrovia ... about 20 miles Northeast of L.A.

The owner tells TMZ ... a handful of visitors have been showing up to take photos at the house every day -- including Christmas Day -- since the movie was released on December 13.

We're told everyone who's stopped by to snap a pic of the "Bird Box" house has been very polite, and some have even knocked on the door to ask for permission.

The owner says she got $12k for the exterior shots -- and despite her house's central role in the movie ... she has no plans to watch "Bird Box." She doesn't have Netflix.

The Hollywood thing's kinda old hat for her because she says her home's been featured in at least 3 other films in the past 20 years, although she couldn't remember specific titles.

Hasan Minhaj's Saudi Arabia episode is off the airwaves there after Netflix received and acted upon a legal complaint from the country that it found valid.

The Financial Times reports that Netflix pulled Minhaj's 'Patriot Act' episode titled "Saudi Arabia" from the streaming service last week in Saudi Arabia itself after receiving a complaint from the country's Communications and Information Technology Commission, which claimed the episode violated an anti-cybercrime law.

According to the outlet, the government agency cited Article 6 of the law, which states in part ... "production, preparation, transmission, or storage of material impinging on public order, religious values, public morals, and privacy, through the information network or computers." It's a crime that's punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine not exceeding 3 million riyals (about $800k).

Translation ... any content that bashes the Saudi government and could cause a stir ain't gonna fly here.

In the episode, Minhaj touches on the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi and was highly critical of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ... joking that the country's leader had been getting away with heinous acts like this for years.

Minhaj quips at one point, saying ... "It blows my mind that it took the killing of a Washington Post journalist for everyone to go, 'Oh, I guess he’s really not a reformer.'" He goes on ... "Meanwhile, every Muslim person you know was like, 'Yeah, no s**t.' He’s the crown prince of Saudi Arabia.' So now would be a good time to reassess our relationship with Saudi Arabia -- and I mean that as a Muslim and as an American."

As we reported ... Khashoggi was brutally murdered last year at a Saudi Arabia consulate in Turkey at the hands of men who Turkish officials say were working under direct orders of the Saudi government. The Saudi government has had shifting stories on its role in the murder and cover-up, but has implied the perpetrators were not following any official orders in killing him, and that it was simply a dust-up gone wrong.

A Netflix spokesperson released a statement, saying, "We strongly support artistic freedom worldwide and removed this episode only in Saudi Arabia after we had received a valid legal request -- and to comply with local law."

If your Christmas wish is to have Kelly, Donna, Steve and the rest of the "Beverly Hills, 90210" crew back in your life, you're in luck ... because reboot talks are going down in Hollywood!

Four of the stars of the iconic '90s show -- Jennie Garth, Tori Spelling, Ian Ziering, Brian Austin Green along with Jason Priestley -- were spotted grabbing coffee on Sunset Blvd. Wednesday ... and we're told they were all together because they're in the middle of a bunch of pitch meetings.

Our sources say the '90210' alums and a couple writers and producers met with execs at Netflix, Amazon and Hulu to pitch the idea of bringing the 'Bev Hills' drama back to TV ... almost 30 years after it all began.

No word if other series stars Luke Perry or Shannen Doherty are involved in the project, but with the massive successes of other '90s reboots lately ... they might want to call their agents.

And, definitely avoid any Ambien tweeting.

John Legend's got a guarantee for all the people slamming the choice of Cardi B as a judge on his new hip-hop competition series.

We got John leaving the Fox Theatre in Atlanta Tuesday night and asked him how he feels about critics saying Cardi's unqualified for the role on the upcoming Netflix show, "Rhythm + Flow," which he's executive producing.

Check out his response ... not the least bit concerned.

"Rhythm + Flow" will be Netflix's first stab at a music reality competition and the first show of its kind to focus solely on rap. It's scheduled to launch in fall 2019, and T.I. and Chance the Rapper are slated to join Cardi on the judges' panel.

And, to be fair, our camera guy got it all wrong -- while there was backlash to Cardi being named a judge, Wendy Williams wasn't part of it. She actually supported the choice on her show, saying Cardi will be a big reason to watch ... especially for young viewers.

Cardi B shook things up Tuesday night in NYC, headlining an event for Pandora and twerking in Gold Medal Olympian fashion.

It makes sense Cardi was the star of Pandora Beyond ... she's got more than a billion streams on Pandora. "Bodak Yellow" has been played over 214 million times. And, get this ... 8.1 million people have created a Cardi B station on Pandora.

She's popular everywhere, but her strongest market is New York City and her biggest growth market is Houston.

Cardi's on fire right now. She's one of the judges on the upcoming Netflix hip-hop music competition series, "Rhythm + Flow." The other judges are T.I. and Chance the Rapper. John Legend is the Executive Producer.

She's clearly figured out how to juggle her career with mommyhood ... Kulture is now 4 months old ... they grow up so fast.

Hollywood heartthrob Noah Centineo got called out by Busy Philipps on TV for ghosting her pal, which made his team go into overdrive trying to protect his rep ... TMZ has learned.

Noah and Busy both appeared on James Corden's 'Late Late Show' Wednesday and, at one point, she revealed the Netflix stud had completely stopped talking to a friend of hers, whom he'd apparently been chatting up. It was slightly awkward, but mostly light-hearted.

As it turns out ... we're told the actual convo ran longer than the clip that aired, and that wasn't by chance. Sources close to the situation tell us Noah's team were worried about the segment, and asked Corden's people to heavily edit it down.

We're told Busy went into detail about how Noah met one of her writers on a dating app, and dragged him for ghosting her. Our sources say Noah's team feared the story would ruin his boy-next-door image.

You can tell 'Late Late Show' execs obliged -- there's an obvious edit at about 56 seconds, plus they didn't post it on their YouTube channel ... as they usually do with noteworthy segments.

Noah blew up this year after starring in Netflix's rom-com, "To All the Boys I've Loved Before."

Plus, he was Camila Cabello's love interest in the "Havana" music vid, and he's in People's new Sexiest Man Alive issue.

Kate Hudson's catching some flak for dressing up as a follower of Bhagwan Rajneesh -- the cult leader in the Netflix docuseries, "Wild Wild Country" -- but one of his former disciples LOVES it.

We talked to Philip Toelkes -- who used to go by Swami Prem Niren when he served as the top attorney for the controversial Rajneeshpuram in the '80s -- and he tells us Kate and her friends were well within their rights to celebrate the group.

Kate faced backlash online after posting the pic, apparently at a Halloween party, because some people felt she was glorifying the "cult."

Let's face it ... Rajneeshees will be a hit Halloween costume this year -- with the popularity of the Netflix series -- and Phil says he's totally on board with that. He also thinks Bhagwan -- aka Osho -- would be too, as long as it's respectful.

Phil also took aim at the haters, who say the Rajneeshees almost ruined a way of life for many Oregonians, saying they never understood their movement.

On the other hand, the mayor of Antelope, OR -- which had been overrun by the Rajneeshees -- tells us, "They plotted to assassinate someone. How friendly would others be if [someone] dressed up as a terrorist for Halloween?"

We all know Jerry Seinfeld takes his love for cars quite seriously -- and, apparently, he feels the same way about luxury scooters too. Can ya tell?

The comic was in NYC Tuesday getting ready to take a ride on a spiffy looking Lambretta -- the Italian-scooter that rivals Vespa, kinda like Ford vs. GM. Jerry must've been on one hell of a mission, 'cause he looked super serious -- the scarf and helmet look is working for him.

Normally, Jerry likes to go 4 wheels ... especially for his hit show, "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee." As far as we can tell, he hasn't taken a fellow comedian out for a scooter ride. It'd spark a great convo though.

Jerry famously owns more than 100 vintage and exotic cars -- mostly Porsches. Nothing wrong with diversifying your portfolio.

Here's your first look at Michael Bay's new action movie starring Ryan Reynolds, and judging by this wild car chase ... it's gonna be a thrilling and very expensive ride!

Ryan was tearing through a busy plaza in Florence, Italy in a lime green Alfa Romeo Giulia. Tires screeching, engine roaring and people jumping out of the way ... as they filmed "Six Underground." The Bay-directed flick has a reported budget of $150 million -- the most expensive Netflix original movie ever.

So far, they're keeping the plot under wraps. Thanks to this clip, we at least we know you're gonna get a heavy dose of Ryan's mug hanging out windows like a golden retriever.

Norm Macdonald is no friend of the #MeToo movement ... and the comedian is tired of seeing showbiz types like Roseanne Barr and Louis C.K. having their careers ruined by scandals.

Norm says he's happy the #MeToo movement has "slowed down" ... and he has a hard time believing every victim who comes forward with allegations, according to an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

The former "Saturday Night Live" star also says it's a shame Roseanne and Louis had their careers derailed by backlash to their words and actions ... believing everyone deserves forgiveness if they admit their wrongs and show remorse.

Norm even set up a conversation between Roseanne and Louis after they both had gigs canceled -- Barr had her show axed by ABC in the wake of racist comments and C.K. was dropped by Netflix and FX following sexual misconduct.

Norm says Roseanne and Louis lost everything in a day, but the victims didn't suffer the same way.

It's some pretty inflammatory stuff from Norm, but we're guessing he won't be fazed by any negative feedback.

7:00 PM PT -- Turns out, Norm was fazed by the backlash to his comments ... because he issued an apology.

Kevin Spacey is getting an ice-cold send-off from "House of Cards" ... courtesy of Robin Wright, whose character is practically dancing on his grave.

We've known for months Spacey's character, ex-Prez Frank Underwood, would be killed off in the show's final season, and with this new trailer we get our first look ... at his tombstone.

Netflix decided to 86 Spacey last November, after multiple allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced -- including several from crew members from the show.

In the show's final season, Spacey's TV widow, Claire Underwood, becomes POTUS -- and looks like her celebration starts graveside.

Matt Groening has a new Netflix show out called "Disenchantment" ... but he's got an enchanting way of appeasing autograph seekers -- he comes prepared.

We got "The Simpsons" creator at LAX Friday, and he showed up with a bag full of signed cartoon drawings to give away ... which he calls his new strategy for pleasing his fans.

Our cameraman even got an original Elfo! (He's one of the stars of Groening's new show.)

Then our guy hit Matt with some jarring news -- a 3D artist on Twitter posted his imagining of what a real-life Homer Simpson would look like ... and he basically replied with an "Ay, Caramba!"

Shonda Rhimes hasn't had a misstep in her career, which is more than can be said about a world-renowned physician who tripped and fell in front of her house, and now the good doc is suing her.

Dr. Kuo Chao claims in a new lawsuit, he was jogging past Shonda's Hancock Park mansion in L.A. back in June 2017, when he tripped over a buckling sidewalk in front of the 8,400 square foot home.

He says he broke his wrist, damaged cartilage and lost range of motion and function in his wrist and arm, which has caused limited mobility and loss of strength and stamina. He also says he has lost "fine motor skills." He says he was unable to work for a long time and it still affects his ability to work.

Dr. Chao says he is a prestigious interventional neuroradiologist -- he treats stroke and aneurysm patients. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Yale.

As for why Dr. Chao says Shonda's responsible, he says she had an obligation to fix the sidewalk, which buckled due to pipes, tree roots and botched repairs. He's also suing the City of L.A.

Dr. Chao is asking for unspecified damages.