Reality TV

There's a big downside to sleeping naked in the jungle, and these "Naked and Afraid" contestants are experiencing it firsthand ... ticks absolutely love genitals!!!

The painful lesson unfolds on the upcoming episode of Discovery's "Naked And Afraid: Castaways" ... when one castaway wakes up to find a handful of ticks attached to his penis!!!

Ya gotta see the video, obtained by TMZ ... Andrew Shayde is just waking up when he discovers the unwanted visitors making camp on his dong ... and he counts them off, one at a time.

Andrew's clearly rattled ... he says he's super worried about his "little castaway" and is freaking out.

For Andrew, it's the latest painful encounter with ticks ... in a past challenge, the parasites got in his butt crack.

Sounds like fellow contestant Patrick French dodged a bullet ... he says ticks embedded between his legs, but they avoided the "prime real estate."

Rachel Leviss' possible return to "Vanderpump Rules" remains shrouded in mystery ... but as filming keeps rolling along, her costars are becoming convinced she won't join the fold.

Sources connected to the hit reality show tell TMZ ... 'VPR' cast members are now feeling more than confident Rachel will NOT return for Season 11.

There's reasoning behind the consensus ... the cast has been filming since late June and Rachel hasn't shot a single scene, either solo or with any other 'VPR' stars.

Bottom line ... it's going to be hard to integrate Rachel into the storylines.

What's more, we're told none of the cast, aside from Tom Sandoval, has been in touch with Rachel since they saw her at the emotional reunion show in late March, which was shot just before Rachel checked into a mental health facility, which she recently left after a lengthy stay.

However, never say never ... we're told 'VPR' stars wouldn't be shocked if Rachel shows up to film at the 11th hour to tell her side of the story about the Scandoval.

Still, our sources say other cast members strongly believe Rachel's therapists convinced her to steer clear of the show and the accompanying drama that led her to seek professional help in the first place.

Bethenny Frankel and her powerhouse attorneys have reportedly been hearing from dozens of angry NBC reality stars ... this after they fired off a legal threat to the company, detailing allegations of horrible treatment on their shows.

According to the New York Post ... roughly 80 cast members -- both men and women -- have reached out to Bethenny and lawyers Bryan Freedman and Mark Geragos about the alleged abuse by the Peacock Network and its subsidiary Bravo, which broadcasts many of the reality programs. Bethenny -- who shot to fame on the 'Real Housewives of New York' -- is spearheading the fight against NBC, but there's no word yet on next legal steps.

TMZ broke the story Friday ... Freedman and Geragos sent the letter to NBC execs, accusing production employees of subjecting cast and crew to a litany of torment. Among their grievances were distributing porn, exploiting minors, covering up acts of violence, plying cast members with booze and denying them food, sleep and mental health treatment.

Freedman talked all about it Friday on TMZ Live ... saying there's been hundreds of mentally ill people exploited by these reality shows, and he finds it "deplorable."

A spokesperson for NBC issued a statement, claiming they're “committed to maintaining a safe and respectful workplace for cast and crew on our reality shows.”

Sammi Sweetheart may have hung up her "Gym, Tan, and Laundry" bag for over a decade, but she's making her big return to the "Jersey Shore," and it now lies on you to step under the lights and find the discreet switch-ups in the two images!

Looking extra sweet in her strappy sandals, the reality star recently accompanied Snooki, Jwoww -- and the rest of the fist-pumpin' squad in New York City to promote the new season of "Jersey Shore." Have you come ready to find the minor changes?

“I'm the sweetest bitch you'll ever meet!"

Some reality stars have gone scorched earth against NBC and, it appears, in particular, Bravo ... claiming its reality stars have been subjected to "grotesque and depraved mistreatment."

TMZ has obtained a letter sent by attorneys Bryan Freedman and Mark Geragos to NBC, claiming current and former cast and crew members of its reality shows have been tormented. Among the allegations:

-- Deliberate attempts to manufacture mental instability by plying cast members with alcohol while depriving them of food and sleep

-- Denying mental health treatment to cast members displaying obvious and alarming signs of mental deterioration

-- Exploiting minors for uncompensated and sometimes long-term appearances on NBC reality TV shows

-- Distributing and/or condoning the distribution of non-consensual pornography

-- Covering up acts of sexual violence

-- Refusing to allow cast members the freedom to leave their shows, even under dire circumstances

The pornography claim is interesting ... in the letter, the lawyers mention "distribution of revenge porn," though they do not elaborate.

The letter demands that NBC retain a slew of information, including "nonconsensual pornography in connection with cast members ... [and] alleged sexual violence perpetrated by or against cast members ..."

The lawyers claim NBC has "threatened [cast members] with ruin should they decide to speak out about their mistreatment."

This aligns with Bethenny Frankel's call to unionize reality stars.

We reached out to NBC for comment ... so far, no word back.

Kyle Richards is teaming up with Morgan Wade for the country singer's new music video ... a move the two say is intended to poke fun at rumors they're currently dating.

Morgan shared a behind-the-scenes look at her new music video for her song, "Fall in Love with Me," which dropped on Friday. She says the vid comes next week, and it looks like Kyle is front and center.

The gals say the internet's gonna go nuts over it, with the singer saying folks always assume she's dating whoever is in her music videos ... so they thought what better way to have some fun with the rumors than to put Kyle in one of them!

They chat about how the 2 became friends and even joke around about the different fits Kyle wears for the vid -- clearly, they get along pretty well together.

You'll recall, rumors have been flying about them dating ever since her split from Mauricio Umansky ... but Kyle's been pretty adamant about them being just friends.

Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix are avoiding making any eye contact these days, according to him ... which is obviously a challenge considering they're still living together.

TS was leaving the Ziggy Hotel in West Hollywood Thursday night, and pressed on the rumors he and Ariana can barely stomach to look at each other anymore ... and the guy ain't denying it.

The photog brings up a good point -- how the hell is that possible when they're still living under the same roof? Tom's response is sure to drop a few jaws.

TMZ broke the story, Ariana's refusing to film any "Vanderpump Rules" scenes with Tom this season ... and the closest they've gotten to each other on-camera was at SUR last month when the whole cast arrived -- but the 2 made sure to avoid direct convo.

BTW, Tom's also asked about Nick Viall's claims that he snuck photos of Rachel Leviss onto the set of 'Special Forces.' Sounds like that was true, too ... but he's shooting down the idea that he ever showed off the pics proudly.

Tom Sandoval smuggled some contraband into the production of "Special Forces," according to Nick Viall ... but it wasn't snacks or booze -- it allegedly was photos of Rachel Leviss.

The "Bachelor" alum spilled the tea on Thursday's episode of his podcast, "The Viall Files" ... saying Tom, his fellow cast member on the upcoming season of the competition series, brought pics of him and Rachel onto set -- which Nick says was against the rules.

Nick told his guest, Sai De Silva, that there were certain things they couldn't bring during the rigorous training process, adding he would've loved to have brought photos of his fiancée Natalie Joy, but he couldn't.

What's more bizarre, Nick claims Tom was showing the pics of him and Rachel around to the rest of the cast. Nick notes the "Vanderpump Rules" star seemed to really care about Rachel, for what it's worth.

TMZ broke the story about Tom and Rachel's affair in March, and we learned in June that he missed the beginning of filming for 'VPR's new season because he was shooting the FOX series in New Zealand.

In other words, folks on the show had plenty of time to know about his affair drama ... but Tom still showed off the pics like a badge of honor, according to Nick.

Joseline Hernandez just got slapped with two more felony charges from her backstage brawl at a Floyd Mayweather fight ... so she had to go through the booking process again at a Florida jail.

The "Love & Hip Hop" alum was in court Thursday for her arraignment when the judge dropped the bad news ... prosecutors are charging her with two felony counts of battery on a law enforcement officer.

Joseline stood before the judge stone-faced as he explained why she needed to be taken into custody again and booked on the new felony charges ... check out the video, it sounds like she won't be spending much of her day in jail.

TMZ broke the story ... police body camera footage from the aftermath of Joseline's epic beatdown of Big Lex captured her violent, profanity-laced rage from start to finish ... and the video shows her shoving cops.

Joseline had initially been charged with a felony charge of resisting officers with violence, plus a slew of misdemeanor charges ... and she previously went through the booking process for those charges.

But, as the judge explained, two new felony charges being tacked on meant Joseline needed to be taken into custody and booked a second time ... in part to prevent her legal team from finding some potential legal loopholes.

"The Bachelorette" alum Gabby Windey is letting the world in on a big secret ... announcing loud and proud that she's dating a woman for the first time.

Gabby shared the big news on social media Wednesday morning -- pointing out the fact that she normally loves to tease and fuel rumors, but admits this was one detail she had to hold on to until she was ready.

She spilled more tea on "The View," saying she's always wanted to live her truth and her own story. On IG, she told her fans her 3 months of dating have been a brand-new experience she seems to be loving.

She also shared some snaps of herself with her new boo, comedy writer Robby Hoffman. They certainly make a cute couple ... Gabby captioned the post, "Told you I'm a girl's girl!" And yeah, she's been met with a ton of support ever since coming out.

Fans remember Gabby being a finalist on Clayton Echard's season of "The Bachelor," and came back to the reality series as the bachelorette for a new season -- alongside her co-runner-up, Rachel Recchia, which was a first for the show.

Gabby ended up choosing Erich Schwer and the 2 got engaged in May 2022, but they announced their breakup a few months later. She certainly was a fan favorite -- Gabby even got a spot on "Dancing with the Stars."

Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet are still a couple, despite reports claiming the two have called it quits ... TMZ has learned.

If you missed it, a report popped up Wednesday claiming Kylie'd been "dumped" ... a story we're told couldn't be further from the truth.

We've spoken to multiple sources close to the couple who tell us just because Kylie and the "Wonka" star haven't been seen together in public doesn't mean they've split. Our sources say everything is cool between the two, they're still an item, and "any reports that say otherwise are false." One source warned fans, "not to believe everything they read."

Of course, things have been pretty secretive between Kylie and Timothée, with reports first popping up they were dating early April.

As we reported -- Kylie was spotted at Timothée's place when the rumors started, and the two grabbed tacos around the same time.

Lizzo is a nightmare to work for behind the scenes -- at least according to 3 of her former backup dancers, who are suing for what they claim were awful conditions on the job.

The singer is named as a defendant in a new lawsuit that was filed by the 3 women who say they danced for Lizzo and her touring company between 2021 and spring 2023 -- when they claim they were either unjustly fired or forced to resign due to unbearable circumstances.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ ... Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez say they made it into Lizzo's orbit through her Amazon reality show 'Watch Out for the Big Grrrls' -- and, after making the cut, they allege they were subjected to a number of CA workplace violations ... several of which amounted to sexual harassment, false imprisonment and interference with prospective economic advantage ... among other claims.

The accusations are being hurled in a few different directions -- including some aimed at members of Lizzo's management team, but as it pertains to her specifically ... she's being accused by these women of basically holding them hostage in a number of situations.

Specifically, the women cite 2 different instances while on the road with her in Europe earlier this year. They claim she subjected them to attend nude shows in Amsterdam and Paris, to the clear discomfort of her employees.

During the Amsterdam outing, they claim Lizzo goaded her dancers to touch the nude performers onstage and interact with them in very vulgar and explicit ways. The dancers claim they felt they had to do this in order to maintain their jobs.

Another claim against Lizzo ... her alleged badgering of these women over alleged poor performance and accusations of drinking on the job, which they say led to her constantly threatening them and their positions on her squad. The dancers even claim Lizzo made them reaudition for their spots in a multi-hour rehearsal that sounds brutal -- one dancer claims she was forced to pee her pants right there onstage out of fear of taking a break.

One dancer also claims Lizzo was privy to an eating disorder she had, and exploited that when she felt this dancer wasn't up to snuff ... allegedly forcing her to talk about it.

On top of all that, these dancers claim they were constantly being stiffed on the money front -- as well as having to constantly turn down other dancing gigs during pauses on tour. They're suing for major damages.

Devin Booker appears to be moving on from Kendall Jenner just fine ... the NBA superstar was spotted partying on a yacht this week -- with a whole lot of bikini-clad girls.

The Phoenix Suns point guard was out on the big boat in Saint Tropez on Monday ... and his guests included some pals -- as well as a quartet of females.

Unclear if Booker -- who split with Kendall late in 2022 after a couple years of dating -- had any romantic interest in them ... though he appeared to be having a great time, regardless.

The 26-year-old and his group of friends initially got the party going on the ship -- before they cruised to shore on a dingy.

But, before touching sand, Booker dove in head first for a swim -- and his big smile showed the water temp was just fine. Eventually, he and the rest made it to land, where he gave some beachgoers a big wave.

Outside of NBA courts ... Devin hasn't been seen all that much since the Kendall breakup -- but it's clear he's doing all right as his ex has moved on with Bad Bunny.

In fact, Booker was seen over the weekend even sippin' some Cincoro Tequila with none other than Michael Jordan while kicking off his European vacation.

Now we know why Kyle Richards has been in Aspen at the same time as her good friend country star Morgan Wade ... Kyle's spreading her wings and producing a documentary on Morgan's life.

Morgan performed Sunday night at Belly Up in Aspen ... and everyone in the audience signed releases allowing the footage shot to be used in a production.

We've learned the production puts the spotlight on Morgan's life ... the highs and lows -- from her rise to stardom to overcoming substance abuse. It also focuses on the 28-year-old cancer issues -- she has a gene that makes her at high risk for ovarian and breast cancer. She'll be getting a double mastectomy in November -- presumably the doc will chronicle that journey.

Kyle is not only the executive producer of the doc, she appears on camera as well. And, Kyle was actually shooting footage of the concert during Sunday's show.

54-year-old Kyle is venturing into new territory, producing and whatnot. Congrats!

"Real Housewives of Atlanta" alum Kenya Moore's changing her tune -- she's now sending well-wishes to Kim Zolciak ... after previously claiming Kim might be lying about her divorce/no-divorce drama.

We got Kenya in NYC, where she said seeing the police body cam footage of Kim and Kroy Biermann during a domestic dispute made her rethink the situation.

After seeing them hurl accusations at the cops, Kenya says divorce just isn't an easy thing to navigate, especially with kids involved.

Kenya, who's been going through her own divorce since 2021, still questions how legit Kim's "divorce" filing really was -- but she's seen enough to send her best to the Biermanns, regardless.

The shift to kindness comes not long after she tweeted Kim lies "through her plastic teeth."

'RHOA' fans know it's been an up-and-down relationship between Kim and Kenya for a while, with most of the drama playing out on camera -- but after seeing the body cam, she's singing a slightly different tune ... for now.

"Blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-alcohol" -- Jamie Foxx, T-Pain, and now, Paul Pierce ... 'cause the Celtics legend is opening up on his infamous stripper video that led to his ESPN firing -- saying he was boozin' hard the night he accidentally streamed his scandalous party on Instagram.

Pierce gave Lance Armstrong the lowdown on the whole controversy in the latest episode of the hit Fox celebrity competition show, "Stars on Mars" ... and he downplayed the whole incident -- even though he lost his TV gig over it.

The Truth explained he was playing poker at his friend's birthday party ... and there was "a lot of alcohol" involved.

"It was a big whole controversy," the Hall of Famer told Lance. "I mean it wasn't nothing illegal, but it was just girls ... girls shaking their ass."

Lance somehow knew nothing about the controversy ... so when he asked how the video even saw the light of day, Paul had to admit it was all his doing.

"I accidentally did, my dumb ass."

Lance hilariously scolded the hooper ... saying, "Bitch, how old are you?!"

Pierce enlisted fellow contestant Tinashe to vouch for the harmfulness of the clip ... and she said it wasn't all that bad on its own, but context had her understanding why it was such a big deal.

Of course, ESPN quickly parted ways with Pierce after the video went viral ... but he's seeing the silver lining in getting the boot, saying, "Maybe I wouldn't be on Mars if that didn't happen. See? Everything happens for a reason."